Princess Hours

This article is about the Korean television series. For the Korean manhwa, see Goong (manhwa).
Princess Hours

Promotional poster for Princess Hours
(L to R: Min Hyo-rin, Crown Prince Lee Shin, Shin Chae-kyeong, Prince Yul)
Also known as 궁
宫
Goong
Genre Romance
Comedy
Drama
Based on Goong 
by Park So-hee
Written by In Eun-a
Directed by Hwang In-roi
Starring Yoon Eun-hye
Ju Ji-hoon
Kim Jeong-hoon
Song Ji-hyo
Opening theme traditional theme
Ending theme "Perhaps Love" by HowL and J
Country of origin South Korea
Original language(s) Korean
No. of episodes 24
Production
Location(s) Korea
Bangkok, Thailand
Running time Wednesdays and Thursdays at 21:55 (KST)
Production company(s) Eight Peaks
Broadcast
Original channel Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation
Original run 11 January 2006 – 30 March 2006
Chronology
Preceded by Young-jae's Golden Days
Followed by Dr. Kkang
Related shows Prince Hours
External links
Website
Korean name
Hangul 궁
Hanja 宫
Revised Romanization Gung
McCune–Reischauer Kung

Princess Hours (Hangul: 궁; hanja: 宫; RR: Gung; lit. "Palace") is a 2006 South Korean romantic comedy television series, starring Yoon Eun-hye, Ju Ji-hoon, Kim Jeong-hoon and Song Ji-hyo.[1] It is based on Korean manhwa Goong by Park So-hee. It aired on MBC from January 11 to March 30, 2006 on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 21:55 for 24 episodes.

Princess Hours was one of MBC's most popular dramas of 2006, second only to Jumong.[2] Overall, the show was the tenth most popular drama of 2006, according to TNS Media. Due to its success, a spin-off series, Prince Hours, was broadcast in 2007.

The Goong teddy bears display at the Teddy Bear Museum in N Seoul Tower

Plot

The show is set in an alternate, 21st-century Korea which has retained its monarchy and imperial family since 1945. The series focuses on the lives of Crown Prince Lee Shin of Korea, and his new bride, Chae-kyeong.

The series starts off with the news that Shin's father, Emperor Lee Hyeon of Korea, is seriously ill. There is a grim outlook on the King's health, driving the imperial family to find Shin a suitable consort that will allow him to ascend to the throne if the situation requires. Despite being in love with the ambitious and talented ballerina Hyo-rin (whom he initially proposed to and was rejected), Prince Shin eventually marries a commoner to whom he was betrothed by his grandfather, the late Emperor Seongjo, in an agreement with the girl's grandfather. His new wife is the headstrong yet lovable Chae-kyeong, and despite initially feeling nothing for each other, love eventually blossoms between the couple.

Matters are further complicated with the return of Lee Yul and his mother, Lady Hwa-young, who was once Crown Princess before the death of her husband, the late Crown Prince Lee Soo, and older brother of the reigning King. Yul and his mother were driven out of the palace some time after the death of his father, and it is revealed that this was because the King discovered an affair between Lady Hwa-Young and the current King, who is his father's younger brother. Lady Hwa-Young has returned to restore her son's place in the line of succession to the throne, which she believes remains rightfully his. A series of events befalls the palace with the schemes Yul's mother carries out, and these are further intensified by the various scandals involving the royal family. Shin maintains an extramarital affair with his old flame, Hyo-rin, while Yul himself developing feelings for Chae-kyeong. Things get out of hand and the royal family takes matters into their own hands.[3]

Cast

Shin Chae-kyeong is a very creative and outgoing, normal high school girl. Although she often seems immature and irritating, she is a kindhearted, innocent, honest person, who is often called "pig" by her younger brother. She attends the same school as Crown Prince Lee Shin of Korea, whose grandfather, the late Emperor Seongjo of Korea, was best friends with her grandfather, To honour their friendship, the King had commanded that Chae-kyeong is to become Crown Princess by marrying the incumbent Crown Prince at the designated time of marriage. Chae-kyeong eventually marries Prince Lee Shin to fulfil the agreement, and she is initially irritated at her young seemingly unemotional new husband. She gradually falls in love with him in the early on of the series, not knowing that he harbours similar feelings, which are revealed towards the end of the series. Although she sees Lee Yul only as a close friend and cousin-in-law, he falls in love with her. At the end of the series, Chae-kyeong falls pregnant with Lee Shin's heir.[3]
Crown Prince Lee Shin of Korea is seen as a smug, indifferent, and insensitive young man. After getting rejected by his girlfriend Hyo Rin, when he proposes to her, he decides to proceed with his arranged marriage to Shin Chae-kyeong. At first, he is irritated by her naivete and enthusiasm, but he begins to open his heart to her and fall in love as he recognises how genuinely sweet she is. Throughout the series, it becomes apparent that he is in fact lonely, sensitive, yet warm and kind. He also owns a teddy bear called Alfred, the only 'companion' that allows him to let his guard down, and which serves as a focal point throughout the series. He quickly becomes rivals with Prince Lee Yul, who returns to Korea after years of exile in the United Kingdom, because Yul is a contender not only for the throne but also for Chae-kyeong's affections.[3]
Prince Yul left Korea at the age of five. He was supposed to succeed his father, Lee Soo, as Crown Prince but he was prevented from doing so when the latter was killed in a car accident. Yul and his mother, Lady Hwa-young were forced into exile in the England. He falls in love with Chae-kyeong and tells her that he is her true betrothed, but was only prevented by his father's death. His mother constantly schemes to get avenge their eviction and secure the throne for him. Towards the end of the series, he tells his mother to stop because he feels tired. He is also best friends with Prince William of Wales; which makes them call each other "hyung".[3]
Hyo-rin is a talented and gifted ballet dancer. She is beautiful, intelligent, accomplished—basically, perfect in every way possible, but she is also poor. Prince Shin and her ballet instructor paid for her tuition fees at school. In the beginning, she is Shin's girlfriend, and he proposes to her. She rejects him, because she does not wish to give up her dreams of becoming a star ballerina. When she sees Chae-kyeong and Shin's wedding and how much Chae-kyeong is loved by the people (similar to the rapport of Diana, Princess of Wales), she regrets her hasty decision, and does everything to win Shin back, including engineering a "chance" meeting in Thailand. She simply ends up hurting herself, driving her to attempted suicide by overdosing on pills. She later recognises that Shin does truly love Chae-kyeong, being the first one to know so. Hyo-rin ultimately concedes and instead decides to concentrate on her career as a ballerina.[3]
After being driven out of the palace. she and her son Yul go into exile in England. Years later, she returns with a sinister plan to restore her son's place in the line of succession to the Korean throne. She constantly schemes, such as by releasing photos to the press of Hyo-rin and Shin in Thailand on a date and spreading numerous rumours about the Crown Prince and Princess to discredit him as a suitable successor to her former lover, the reigning King.

Extended cast

Awards

Remakes and spin-offs

Prince Hours

Main article: Prince Hours

A spin-off series, Goong S or Prince Hours, revolves around a young worker at a Chinese restaurant who suddenly discovers that he is a member of the royal family and subsequently enters the palace. Hwang mentioned that he would be looking for Yoon Eun Hye's male counterpart, of sorts. This spinoff has no relation to the first season since there is a new cast and plot.

In October 2006, Korean pop star Se7en was chosen to play the leading role in the spinoff. He will play the character of "Yi Hoo", while others in the drama's second season include Huh E-jae (who plays Yang Soon-Ae), Kang Doo (who plays Yi Joon), and Park Shin-hye (who plays Shin Sae-Ryung). Many of the supporting cast reprised their roles. Filming started in November 2006.

The name for the spin-off changed from Goong 2 to Goong S – Prince Hours (궁 S) due to copyright infringement problems. Filming continued despite Group 8 facing lawsuits due to the unlawful use of Goong in the title.[5] However, MBC has looked into this issue with Eight Peaks and have stated that the channel station and original production company both own the rights of the name.[6] Goong S will still be used for this season, with the subtitle of "Prince Who". Goong S was broadcast from January 10 to March 15, 2007, with only a few minor characters returning for this spinoff.

Goong: Musical

This popular 2006 TV drama was later adapted into a hit musical titled Goong: Musical (Hangul: 뮤지컬 궁). Producer Song Byung-joon, CEO of production company Group Eight collaborated again with TV drama writer In Eun-ah for the stage rendition, then brought in theater director Kim Jae-sung.[7] The creative team constructed flamboyant stage sets, which were visualized through digital devices to show off the dramatic effects and fantasies on stage. A variety of music genres from the traditional court music, classics, hip-hop and jazz was used, along with ballet, court dances and b-boying.[8][9]

When the musical debuted at the Yong Theater at the National Museum of Korea in September 2010,[10] the lead role of Crown Prince Lee Shin was played by U-Know Yunho of TVXQ.[11][12][13]

Kim Kyu-jong of SS501 played Shin during the musical's run at the Minami-za Kabuki Theater in Kyoto, Japan in June–July 2011,[14][15][16] and Kangin of Super Junior alternated with Sungmo of Supernova to take over the role at the Gotanda U-Port Hall in Tokyo, Japan in September 2012.[17][18][19]

Remake

Benci Bilang Cinta starring Andriani Marshanda and Baim Wong, aired in Indonesia in 2006.

Episode ratings

Date Episode Nationwide Seoul Area
2006-01-11 1 16.2% (5th) 16.6% (5th)
2006-01-12 2 16.0% (6th) 16.5% (7th)
2006-01-18 3 14.3% (9th) 14.3% (8th)
2006-01-19 4 15.1% (9th) 15.3% (8th)
2006-01-25 5 19.7% (5th) 20.5% (4th)
2006-01-26 6 16.5% (8th) 16.5% (7th)
2006-02-01 7 13.7% (11th) 14.0% (10th)
2006-02-02 8 18.6% (6th) 19.1% (6th)
2006-02-08 9 24.0% (2nd) 25.2% (2nd)
2006-02-09 10 25.2% (2nd) 26.3% (2nd)
2006-02-15 11 24.5% (2nd) 25.7% (2nd)
2006-02-16 12 25.6% (2nd) 27.2% (2nd)
2006-02-22 13 25.0% (2nd) 25.8% (2nd)
2006-02-23 14 26.7% (2nd) 28.4% (2nd)
2006-03-02 15 27.9% (2nd) 28.8% (2nd)
2006-03-02 16 24.3% (3rd) 25.0% (3rd)
2006-03-08 17 25.8% (2nd) 26.1% (2nd)
2006-03-09 18 26.6% (2nd) 27.1% (2nd)
2006-03-15 19 27.0% (2nd) 27.3% (2nd)
2006-03-16 20 27.1% (2nd) 26.9% (2nd)
2006-03-22 21 24.6% (2nd) 25.2% (2nd)
2006-03-23 22 24.4% (2nd) 25.5% (2nd)
2006-03-29 23 25.4% (2nd) 26.9% (2nd)
2006-03-30 24 28.3% (2nd) 28.8% (2nd)
Average 22.6% 23.2%

Source: TNS Media Korea

International

DVD release

The US DVD release by YA Entertainment uses the title Palace.[20]

Broadcast

the series re-aired again on ABS-CBN's Kapamilya Gold (Afternoon slot) due to the public demand.

Original soundtrack

Princess Hours
Original Sound Track
Soundtrack album by Various Artists
Released May 30, 2007
Genre Pop, K-pop, soundtrack, R&B
Label Vitamin Entertainment
Disc 1:
No. TitleArtist Length
1. "사랑인가요" (Perhaps Love)HowL feat. J  
2. "당신은...나는 바보입니다 (Acoustic ver.)" (With You...I'm a Fool)Stay  
3. "두 가지 말" (Two Words)Jung Jae-wook feat. The One  
4. "Give Me a Little Try"  Seo Hyun-jin  
5. "난 널 사랑해 너만 사랑해Ⅱ"  Shim Tae-yoon  
6. "사랑인가요 (Remix ver. 가재발)" (Perhaps Love (Remix ver. 가재발))   
7. "1993 광화 49년"  Various Artists  
8. "宮"  Various Artists  
9. "복장 불량!"  Various Artists  
10. "우주 정복 #1"  Various Artists  
11. "Crystal Flower"  Various Artists  
12. "A Dancing Teddy"  Various Artists  
13. "내가 선택한 길이야!"  Various Artists  
14. "닿지 못한 마음"  Various Artists  
15. "꽃잎이 내린다"  Various Artists  
16. "우주 정복 #2"  Various Artists  
Disc 2:
No. TitleArtist Length
1. "사랑에 빠지다" (Falling in Love)HowL feat. Luna  
2. "그대를 사랑합니다"  Various Artists  
3. "이 노래를 부를게요" (I Would Sing This Song)Sorea  
4. "Always"  Geon Hwi  
5. "궁 (Piano)" (Palace (Piano))2nd Moon  
6. "바람에 실어" (Blow By Wind)Sorea  
7. "꽃잎이 내리다 (Piano)"  2nd Moon  
8. "너를 보면..."  Words by the Crown Princess  
9. "惡緣"  2nd Moon  
10. "내 맘속의 너"  Words by the Crown Prince  
11. "Home"  2nd Moon  
12. "닿지 못한 마음 (Acoustic ver.)"  2nd Moon  
13. "별처럼..."  Words by the Crown Princess  
14. "말할 수 없어도"  2nd Moon  

See also

References

  1. ↑ "An interview of Joo Ji-hoon from Princess Hours". MBC Global Media. 14 February 2008. Retrieved 2014-06-13.
  2. ↑ 시청률로 본 올 최고의 드라마는?. MyDaily (in Korean). 11 December 2006. Retrieved 2007-01-03.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 "Princess Hours" Korea Tourism. Retrieved 2011-11-19
  4. ↑ "Individual category winners - 1st SDA 2006". Seoul International Drama Awards. Retrieved 2011-10-22.
  5. ↑ "‘궁S’ 세븐-허이재 VS 강두-박신혜 "첫 촬영부터 비교되네~"". News En (in Korean). 27 November 2006. Retrieved 2007-07-04.
  6. ↑ "MBC측 "궁S의 ‘프린스 후’ 는 납품명이자 드라마 부제"". News En (in Korean). 19 January 2007. Retrieved 2007-07-04.
  7. ↑ Choi, Ji-eun (15 March 2010). "INTERVIEW: Producer Song Byung-joon of musical Goong". 10Asia. Retrieved 2012-08-10.
  8. ↑ Chung, Ah-young (23 February 2010). "Princess Hours Goes on Stage". The Korea Times. Retrieved 2012-08-10.
  9. ↑ Kim, Lynn (3 February 2010). "TV series Goong to be made into musical production". 10Asia. Retrieved 2012-08-10.
  10. ↑ Kim, Lynn (16 June 2010). "Goong set on rekindling Hallyu fever with musical adaptation". 10Asia. Retrieved 2012-08-10.
  11. ↑ Kang, Seung-hun (10 June 2010). "U-Know Yunho cast as male lead in Goong musical". 10Asia. Retrieved 2012-08-10.
  12. ↑ Hong, Lucia (6 July 2010). "Official poster of musical Goong revealed". 10Asia. Retrieved 2012-08-10.
  13. ↑ Hong, Lucia (9 July 2010). "U-Know Yunho racks up ticket sales for musical Goong". 10Asia. Retrieved 2012-08-10.
  14. ↑ Kim, Heidi (12 April 2011). "SS501 Kim Kyu-jong to star in musical Goong". 10Asia. Retrieved 2012-08-10.
  15. ↑ Kim, Heidi (15 April 2011). "SS5501 Kim Kyu-jong poses for pictures of musical Goong". 10Asia. Retrieved 2012-08-10.
  16. ↑ Kim, Heidi (14 June 2011). "Korean musical Goong arrives in Japan". 10Asia. Retrieved 2012-08-10.
  17. ↑ Hong, Lucia (12 July 2012). "Super Junior Kang-in confirms role in musical Goong in Japan". 10Asia. Retrieved 2012-08-10.
  18. ↑ "Japanese Musical Version of K-drama Goong to Star Kang In and Sung Mo". KBS Global. 30 August 2012. Retrieved 2012-08-10.
  19. ↑ Sunwoo, Carla (30 August 2012). "Boy band members take on musical". Korea JoongAng Daily. Retrieved 2012-08-10.
  20. ↑ "Palace". YA Entertainment. Retrieved 2011-05-21.
  21. ↑ "Goong: Love in Palace". Hanryū Alpha (in Japanese). Fuji TV. Retrieved 2012-04-26.
  22. ↑ "Goong: Love in Palace". BS Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved 2012-08-10.
  23. ↑ "Drama Goong to air in Japan for 2nd time". 10Asia. 7 July 2010. Retrieved 2014-06-13.
  24. ↑ "Korean TV Dramas to Air in Indonesia". KBS Global. 17 August 2006. Retrieved 2014-06-13.

External links