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| Actors Lee Dong-hae, left, and Song Ha-yoon pose during a press conference for ENA's new romantic comedy series "Oh! Young-shim," Monday. Courtesy of KT Studio Genie |
By Lee Gyu-lee
"Young-Shim," a story following the life of a 14-year-old girl, became one of the most popular animations of the 1990s.
Almost 30 years later, the animations' characters are brought back to life by actors Lee Dong-hae, also known as Donghae of Super Junior, and Song Ha-yoon, in ENA's new romantic comedy series "Oh! Young-shim."
Based on the animation, the series, which premiered on Monday, follows the two lead characters, Oh Young-shim (Ha) and her childhood friend Wang Kyung-tae (Lee), 20 years after middle school.
Oh became a variety show producer and reunites with her childhood friend, Wang, a start-up CEO, and a romance begins between the two.
"This series shows how Young-shim has turned out after 20 years. She is a reality show producer of eight years and still a rowdy character," Ha said during the online press conference for the series, Monday.
"I was curious about Yong-shim's life (after the animation) and thought it would be nice to be able to live as her …. Young-shim in 'Oh! Young-shim' really lives to her fullest. So as I was playing the character, it inspired me a lot and I'm still trying to live with such passion, like her."
The actress shared that she did succumb to pressure playing such a popular, nostalgic character.
"There was a sense of pressure that comes from the name and playing the character of Young-shim. But I decided that I should only bring in the nuance of Young-shim that I remember when creating my character," she said.
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| A scene from the series "Oh! Young-shim" / Courtesy of KT Studio Genie |
"(In the series,) she's still a leader-figure and loud. I barely wore any makeup when playing her. I would have bags under my eyes, messy hair, and gobble up food... It was impossible to be exactly like the character from the original work, so I tried to make her just enough to bring some nostalgic sentiment."
Lee is returning to the small screen for the first time in nine years since starring in the crime series "Quiz of God 4" in 2014.
"It has been 8-9 years since I've taken a series so it has been very exciting and nerve-wracking," he said. "It only took a moment to decide to do this series. When I imagined becoming Kyung-tae that I know from the animation, it felt really fun and interesting."
He added the main focus in playing his character was to bring nostalgia to the viewers.
"I tried to think about how we can bring reminiscences to many of those who know the animation 'Young-shim'," he said. "Because I needed to offer nostalgia to those who know 'Young-shim' and also make it interesting for those who don't know the character, it was overwhelming," he said. "We managed to have fun filming it and made a good series. So I hope everyone will look forward to watching it."
"Oh! Young-shim" airs weekly on Monday and Tuesday at 10 p.m.
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