Cha Dal-gun works as an underrated stuntman, while simultaneously taking care of his orphaned nephew, Cha Hoon. Although they have a fairly loving relationship, Hoon argues with his uncle before he leaves to go on a field trip to Morocco. Just before the plane takes off, Hoon sends a video of himself encouraging Dal-gun to continue following his dream to become a master in Taekwondo. At a drama set Dal-gun watches a report of a plane crash that killed over 200 civilians due to structural failure.
[Korean Drama] Vagabond
Vagabond initially received a lot of publicity for its big budget and excellent cast. Then it was evident early on that this was going to be a drama that was jam-packed with action, intrigue, and life and death stakes. So did it live up to the hype? It most certainly did!
So how about the reunion of Lee Seung Gi and Suzy? Overall, I was very happy with it. This is an action drama with Dal Gun and Hae Ri constantly in the middle of life and death situations, so romance really takes a backseat to everything, but they are working closely together for most of the drama, so we get lots of opportunities to see them interact. They are a fun duo to watch.
Without getting into spoiler territory, let me just briefly mention the ending. It introduces some interesting plot developments, but it leaves things completely open. As in, we really need a season 2, but as is usual with most dramas, there has been no confirmation of one.
Vagabond was a fun drama on so many levels. The thrills just keep coming thanks to a great pace, intriguing corruption mystery, and consistent plot developments. The characters are interesting and sympathetic as well as being very entertaining.
I definitely enjoyed this drama. I gave it an 8 because of the ending. I am not too bothered by the ending though. Maybe my mind is already waiting for that second season which may never come. I can definitely watch more of this. Lee Seung Gi was so good and Suzy was great too. And she is so pretty.
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The popular K-drama Vagabond featuring Lee Seung-gi, Bae Suzy and Shin Sung-rok, was released in 2019. The premiere obtained the highest viewership ratings in its time slot across all public broadcast networks. All its subsequent episodes were among the topmost searched dramas in South Korea since its premiere. The season continued to rank first in the list until its finale.
At the end of the first season, Lee Seung-gi told Alkpop, "When you watch the end of season 1, there's no way that the story just ends there, without season 2. When you watch American dramas, many of them end similarly, leaving you going, 'Huh?'. I think the possibility of season 2 depends on the viewers, and of course on business matters. If the opportunity arises, I would like to [work on season 2]."
Korean dramas are rarely renewed for multiple seasons, but there is a high demand for Vagabond Season 2 across the world. Looking at the show's popularity and devoted fanbase, some industry experts think it's just a matter of time before we get Season 2.
Additionally, while talking about the ending of Vagabond, Lee Seung-gi said to Alkpop, "When you watch the end of season 1, there's no way that the story just ends there, without season 2. When you watch American dramas, many of them end similarly, leaving you going, 'Huh?'. I think the possibility of season 2 depends on the viewers, and of course on business matters. If the opportunity arises, I would like to [work on season 2]."
It's no secret that producing a Korean drama costs a lot. That's why Netflix is investing US$500 million on original Korean content alone. The lavish production designs, A-list cast, detailed set designs, special effects, filming locations and fashionable outfits are needed to create a top-tier drama.
With more and more people jumping on the K-drama mania, we can expect more Korean dramas to also spend more on production costs to deliver the best production possible. Here, we break down some of the popular Korean dramas with the highest production costs whether it's fantasy, historical or romance.
Arthdal Chronicles is the first historical fantasy Korean drama so it's expected that production cost is high. The show premiered when Game of Thrones was still a hit, another show that's known for its expensive production from special effects, costumes to set designs. The Korean drama stars A-list actors from Song Joong-ki, Kim Ji-won to Jang Dong-gun and was divided into three parts which increased the cost of production.
Filming was also partly done in Brunei while a set was built specifically for the drama in Osan, Gyeonggi Province. It's estimated that each episode of Arthdal Chronicles cost about 3 billion Korean won.
Lee Byung-hun who headlined the drama and have appeared in several Hollywood movies was rumoured to have been paid 150 million won per episode. It seems that the expensive budget paid off as the drama received critical acclaim for its acting, cinematography and retelling of South Korea's past.
Kingdom is another historical drama that cost quite a fortune. But the elements of horror (zombies) might have increased the production cost. One episode of Kingdom is estimated to cost 3 billion Korean won which is why each season only has six episodes each. The historical-horror drama also stars notable celebrities including Ju Ji-hoon, Bae Doona and Ryu Seung-ryong.
The King: Eternal Monarch made headlines when it was announced due to lead actor, Lee Min-ho's expensive salary for each episode. It was his comeback drama after finishing his military service and with the use of special effects for the fantasy elements as well as all the expensive cars, jewellery, horses, set designs that go with the royalty storyline, the production cost is bound to cost quite a sum. Also, the production team had to recreate the imaginary worlds but make it look a bit close to the city of Busan.
The first non-fantasy and non-historical series on this list is Vagabond, an action drama that stars Suzy Bae, Lee Seung-gi and Shin Sung-rok. Most of the production budget series was spent on overseas filming fees as the series was filmed in Morocco and Portugal as well as the talent fees of its top stars.
Another Lee Min-ho drama makes it to the list. The popular Korean actor stars Hallyu star, Jun Ji-hyun in Legend of the Blue Sea, a fantasy romance drama. It's not surprising that part of the production cost went to the star's pockets but the special effects of the mermaid, as well as the overseas filming in Spain and Palau cost a lot. This was also Lee's last drama before his military enlistment as well as Jun's before her hiatus due to pregnancy.
Mega K-drama hit, Crash Landing On You has a budget of about 20 billion Korean won which allowed part of the series to be filmed in Switzerland, a country not known for being cheap. The drama also stars top actor Hyun Bin and actress, Son Ye-jin. Recreating the North Korea scenes as well as the lavish outfits that Son's heiress character wears definitely added to the huge budget too.
Dark comedy-action drama, Vincenzo stars A-lister Song Joong-ki which was definitely added to the production cost. While the drama didn't film overseas due to the pandemic, it did spend a lot more on the CGIs and special effects of Vincenzo's shenanigans.
Lee Seung Gi and Bae Suzy previously starred together in the 2013 fantasy series Gu Family Book. He played a half human, half supernatural creature known in Korean mythology as a gumiho. She played a martial arts instructor and female warrior. The supernatural love story received better than average ratings, but as Korean dramas are usually limited to 16-hour episodes or 32 half-hour episodes, there was no second season. This particular drama had 24 hour-long episodes but the romantic chemistry between the two actors was too successful not to revive in a new drama.
In their next drama together, Lee Seung Gi will play Cha Dal Geon, a stuntman who dreams of being an action star and uncovers a corruption scandal, while Bae Suzy plays a secret agent, who has only chosen to be an agent because of the paycheck. Shin Sung Rok, last seen in The Empress, will join them as a National Intelligence Agency official.
Moon Jung Hee will play the role of Jung Mi Hwa. This will be the third Netflix project for the actress after previously starring in the k-dramas Vagabond and Mystic Pop-Up Bar. Outside of Netflix, she has starred in movies such as Pandora, Dad for Rent, and Deranged.
There are three characters that deserve a special mention in Vagabond. The first two are the mercenaries Lily and Do-su. The duo became a great light-hearted addition to the drama. Although they both played a relatively small role it was interesting to see how they ended up playing a crucial part in ensuring Dal Geon was alive. Lee Mi Young is also a superbly developed character and played a pivotal role of driving the plot forward. His blind loyalty to the president stops him from doing what is morally right and inevitably makes matters worse!
Vagabond is an intense Hollywood style blockbuster Korean Drama that is defiantly worth watching. It pays homage to Jason Bourne through it impeccable action sequences and stunningly shit locations. However, what you may find frustrating with Vagabond is the ending of the series which leaves on a terrible cliffhanger. What is even more bewildering is that it leave son a cliffhanger with no confirmation of a season two! Its a unsatisfying ending and does not deliver on a full rounded story like most Korean dramas do. So you are left the series will be renewed again in the future so we can find out what happens between Dal Geon and Hae Ri. There are are also quite a few questions we need answers to and characters we need to explore further too including Edward Park. So if a season two is announced in the future I will be sure to tune in to get some answers. 2ff7e9595c
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