Asian Drama

Set during the reign of famous tyrant King Yeonsangun, it tells the story of Hong Gil Dong (Yoon Kyun Sang), the illegitimate son of a nobleman who stole from the rich and gave to the poor, and his journey in becoming Joseon’s first revolutionary activist.

The three main characters of this drama pose the question of what a “righteous life” is in the era of political and social turmoil of the late Joseon Dynasty, when progressive thinking and the Confucian social reform movement “Silhak” began penetrating into Joseon from the Qing Dynasty. It was also a period when the 400-year Joseon Dynasty was gradually losing ground, unable to respond to external and internal changes in the wake of the Japanese invasion of the 16th century and the Manchu War, resulting in clashes between the king, who dreamed of restoring his authority through powerful reforms aimed at improving the lives of grass-root people, and conservative political forces, which felt threatened by the self-justified royal authority.

Drama series follows the turbulent life of Jang Ok-Jung (Kim Tae-Hee), who is also known as Lady Jang Hui-Bin, one of the most famous royal concubines in the Joseon Dynasty. She began her career as a court lady who stitched clothing as a fashion designer of her time.

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Jang Ok-Jung's mother was a slave, but her father was a middle-class merchant seller. When she was a teen, her whole family went on the run from slave hunters. Her older brother was lost during this time. Her father was also beaten to death and Jang Ok-Jung's mother was returned to her owner. Afterwards, Jang Ok-Jung lived with a friend of the family, Madame Jung Kang (Yun Yu-Seon). During this time she learned how to sew at Madame Jung Kang's linen shop. She also met for the first time Crown Prince Lee Soon (later played by Yoo Ah-In) around this time. Crown Prince Lee Soon spotted pickpockets stealing from Jang Ok-Jung and came to her aid. They spent a moment together while taking shelter from the rain. Crown Prince Lee Soon fell in love with Jang Ok-Jung then. Even though Lee Soon was the Crown Prince, he was basically powerless at the time. Power was actually wielded by the noblemen. This drove Lee Soon to become a powerful king one day.

As an adult, Jang Ok-Jung runs her own clothing boutique named "Booyongjung". Her handmade clothes become quite popular and in demand. Jang Ok-Jung hopes to free her mother from slavery with her earnings and eventually go to Qing with her.

Jang Ok-Jung then puts on a fashion show. Her mother's owner attends the fashion show and ruins everything for Jang Ok-Jung. She berates Jang Ok-Jung in front of all of her clients, informing everyone her mother is a slave. After the show, Jang Ok-Jung's business quickly goes downhill. A customer then requests Jang Ok-Jung to make clothes for a royal family member, which she promises to do.

Meanwhile, Crown Prince Lee Soon struggles to gain power from the nobility. He only trusts Prince Dongpyung (Lee Sang-Yeob). Lee Soon is now of age to marry. His mother and the man he despises the most, Nobleman Min Yoo-Joong (Lee Hyo-Jeong), decide that Lee Soon will marry nobleman Min Yoo-Joong's daughter Inhyun (Hong Soo-Hyun). Inhyun has been raised to become a queen from a young age and she has never once doubted her fate. Lee Soon's mother and Nobleman Min Yoo-Joong are nervous though that Lee Soon may reject Inhyun due to her father. Because of this, Crown Prince Lee Soon's mother and Nobleman Min Yoo-Joong concoct a plan.

Crown Prince Lee Soon then sees a woman in the garden. That woman is Jang Ok-Jung, who is waiting to take his measurements. Crown Prince Lee Soon thinks she looks familiar, but he can't place where they have met before. The Crown Prince then asks Jang Ok-Jung if they have met before, but she says no.

Jang Ok-Jung later goes to her mother's owner to buy her freedom, but the slave owner refuses. Jang Ok-Jung asks the slave owner for a reason why her offer is refused and the slave owner tells her to go ask her uncle Jang Hyun (Sung Dong-Il). Her uncle is a highly ambitious man, who hopes to use Jang Ok-Jung for his own ambitions.

Meanwhile, Prince Dongpyung, the man Crown Prince Lee Soon trusts the most, takes an interest in Jang Ok-Jung. Prince Dongpyung then arranges a party where he can spend more time with her. At the party, Crown Prince Lee Soon is also there.

This drama is about a beggar rising to the top and overruling the feudalist government that had been in power for over 60 years. --HanCinema

This is the story of two women, Seo Jung Eun and Han Yoo Kyung, who walk very different paths to achieve their desires. Seo Jung Eun is a strong and courageous woman who has suffered a difficult life, having grown up in an orphanage, but continues to embrace people around her despite longing for affection herself. Jung Eun harbours the hope that she will meet her mother if she becomes a star, striving to reach her goal and overcome her suffering with her pure and innocent nature. In contrast, Han Yoo Kyung has a birth secret for which she is willing to throw away everything in order to get revenge. The "thorn birds" of the title refers to Jung Eun's character, who only brings out her best at the cost of great pain. A thorn bird is a mythical bird who searches for a thorn tree from the day it is born. When it finds it, the bird impales itself upon the sharpest thorn, and rises above the agony to sing the most beautiful song ever heard.

A group of secret agents called “Ang Shim Jung” struggles against the 12 Zodiac Animals, a power-hungry organization that controls Joseon. Min Chung Seol is a noblewoman whose entire family was killed, and she ends up joining Ang Shim Jung, where she meets Kang Ye Rang.

Chuno follows the story of Lee Dae Gil, a man of high birth, whose family was ruined when Won Ki Yoon, a slave, burnt down his house and escaped with his sister, Un Nyun, who was in love with Dae Gil. Driven by his desire for revenge, he survived his harsh years on the street and made his name as a slave hunter, dedicated in his pursuit to find Un Nyun, his first and only love. Song Tae Ha is a General of the Army who became a slave after being falsely accused of a crime he did not commit, and finds himself on the run from Dae Gil's relentless pursuit. Both men become entangled in a love triangle with Un Nyun, who is no longer a runaway slave, but Kim Hye Won, a nobleman's daughter.

The Lee family harbored a secret and it was believed that was how they could survive for generation and prospered no matter what the circumstances. The family was the decendant of the nine tailed fox. Once a female family member reached puberty, she would undergo a ritual to determine if she carried the genes of the nine tailed fox. If she were, she would be 'married off' and never see her family again. Lee Myung Ok was the youngest daughter of the family and her curiosity led her to dicover that the marriage was a farce whereas in actual fact, the 'bride' was being sacraficed and killed so the family patriarch could prolong his life feasting on the liver of the nine tailed fox. When her only sister was killed in such manner, Myung Ok unleashed her fury and turned into a nine tailed fox herself to seek revenge. Is this the end of the family?

Jang Bo Go was a slave from Shilla (a Korean dynasty that lasted from 57 B.C. until 935 A.D.) He was sold in China during the Tang Dynasty, where he was trained as a gladiator-slave. Through hard work and perseverance, he made it back to Shilla and became a successful sea merchant. The sea passage at the time was plagued by pirates and Jang Bo Go went head to head with them in battles and managed to keep the pirates at bay.

This epic drama tells the story of a historical figure blending it with intrigue and battle of wit to make it into a successful drama of all times.

The drama shows how members of a good-natured family endure life’s hardships and how the love they have for each other helps them no matter how many difficulties they face.

Kwon Hyuk Joon's grandfather, the head of the traditional Kwon family agrees to an arranged marriage between his grandson, Hyuk Joon, and Yoon Jung Sook when Yoon Jung Sook is born. Eventually, the two families lose contact with each other, because soon after the contract is signed, Jung Sook's family encounters financial issues and is forced to run away.

18 years later, Jung Sook has grown up to be a rebellious and strong-willed girl who just wants to live her life as she sees fit. With little aspirations, she is the direct foil of her achievement-bound counterpart, Hyuk Joon. When the two meet again, they clash horribly; Jung Sook thinks her fiancee is nothing but boring, and Hyuk Joon believes Jung Sook to be nothing but an immature child. Despite this, they marry. What follows is the story of their new life living together as a couple, and the obstacles they are faced with.