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Bel Ami (South Korean TV series)

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Bel Ami
Promotional poster for Bel Ami
Also known asPretty Boy
Beautiful Man
Beautiful Guy
Hangul
예쁜 남자
Hanja
예쁜 男子
Literal meaningPretty Man
Revised RomanizationYeppeun Namja
McCune–ReischauerYeppŭn Namja
GenreRomance
Comedy
Based onPretty Man
by Chon Kye-young
Written byYoo Young-ah
Directed byLee Jae-sang
Jung Jung-hwa
Shin Yong-hwi
StarringJang Keun-suk
Lee Ji-eun
Lee Jang-woo
Han Chae-young
Country of originSouth Korea
Original languageKorean
No. of episodes16
Production
Executive producerKwak Ki-won
ProducerLee Jin-seo
Running timeWednesdays and Thursdays at 22:00 (KST)
Production companiesGroup 8
Pineapple Holdings
Original release
NetworkKBS2
ReleaseNovember 20, 2013 (2013-11-20) –
January 9, 2014 (2014-01-09)

Bel Ami (Korean예쁜 남자; Hanja예쁜 男子; RRYeppeun Namja; MRYeppŭn Namja; lit. Pretty Man) is a 2013–2014 South Korean romantic comedy television series starring Jang Keun-suk, Lee Ji-eun, Lee Jang-woo, and Han Chae-young.[1][2] Based on the same-titled 17-volume manhwa by Chon Kye-young, it aired on KBS2 from November 20, 2013, to January 9, 2014, on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 22:00 (KST) for 16 episodes.[3]

Synopsis

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Dokgo Ma-te (Jang Keun-suk) is a pretty boy. His mother dies without giving him the password to meet his father, whom he never knew. Ma-te's mother gives it instead to Hong Yoo-ra (Han Chae-young), an ex-heiress who was once the daughter-in-law of a wealthy family. A family that she thinks Ma-te's father is the chairman of. Yoo-ra promises to give him the password if he conquers several women and learns valuable lessons from each of them so as to conquer Na Hong-ran, Yoo-ra's ex mother-in-law and the Chairman Park Ki-suk's wife, who is evil and ruthless. But then Kim Bo-tong (IU), an ordinary girl from a poor background decides to aid Ma-te in pursuing his father's heels. She has had a huge crush on him since high school and is willing to do anything to help him succeed. Despite himself, Ma-te falls for Bo-tong. But Choi David (Lee Jang-woo), who is also the Chairman's secret son and is like the male Bo-tong, falls for her too, leading into a conflict of romance and deception.

Cast

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Main

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A boy who discovered as early as kindergarten that he was prettier than most and could get special treatment because of it. During his school years he never once had to bring lunch to school, and now only has to glance at designer stuff in stores for rich women to purchase them for him. He discovers he has a wealthy father who he doesn't remember. His role within the drama is to learn different things from dating/seducing ten wealthy ladies, so that he can eventually undertake the role of meeting with his father.
An average girl from Ma-te's neighborhood who's had an unrequited crush on him since junior high. She is innocent and free hearted who is head over heels in love with Ma-te and helps him through his journey of overcoming troubles to meet his father. Her name, Bo-tong means 'average' in Hangul.
A friendly, free-spirited marketing director who falls for Bo-tong and helps her out. He has a strange past too, however also changes the story with his funny and warm personality. He meets Bo-tong when she starts to sell her belongings to earn money and immediately gets attracted to her innocent charm.
The glamorous, successful woman Ma-te wants but can't get. She makes a game of "training" him and tells Ma-te to seduce ten of the most eligible bachelorettes in the city first. She has had a difficult life filled with torture as she can not see her own child nor talk to her husband from the harsh rule of the wife of the chairman.

Supporting

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  • Kim Bo-yeon as Na Hong-ran
  • Dokgo Young-jae as Park Ki-suk
  • Kim Young-jae as Park Moon-soo
  • So Yoo-jin as Jaek-hee
  • Kim Ye-won as Electric Fairy
  • Cha Hyun-jung as Kim In-joong
  • Park Ji-yoon as Myo-mi
  • Kim Bo-ra as Kwi-ji
  • Jung Sun-kyung as Yi-kim
  • Kim Min-joo as Yeo-mim
  • Yang Mi-kyung as Kim Mi-sook, Ma-te's mother
  • Kim Ji-han as Jang Deok-saeng
  • Lee Mi-young as Lee Mal-ja, Bo-tong's mother
  • Yeo Hoon-min as Kim Dae-shik, Bo-tong's younger brother[13]
  • Ahn Byung-kyung as Na Jin-seok
  • Lee Do-yup as Na Hwan-kyu
  • Kim Seul-gi as Ma-te's high school teacher in senior year (cameo, Ep. 1)
  • Jo Hye-ryun as female police officer (cameo, Ep. 1)
  • Go Myung-hwan as MG Home Shopping organization director (cameo, Ep. 5)

Original soundtrack

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Bel Ami (Original Television Soundtrack)
Soundtrack album by
Various Artists
GenrePop, K-pop, soundtrack, R&B, teen pop
LabelGroup 8
CJ E&M Music
Part 1:
No.TitleArtistLength
1."Pretty Man (예쁜남자)"Bebop3:40
2."Lovely Girl"5live3:24
Part 2:
No.TitleArtistLength
1."I Have a Person That I Love (사랑하는 사람 있어요)"Melody Day4:29
2."Poor Sense of Direction (길치)"Lunafly3:55
Part 3:
No.TitleArtistLength
1."Fever (열병)"Hwanhee4:12
2."Perfect"Dear Cloud3:57
Part 4:
No.TitleArtistLength
1."Going to You"LEDApple3:51
2."Saying I Love You (사랑한단 말야)"Lee Jang-woo3:42
Part 5:
No.TitleArtistLength
1."Pastel Crayon (크레파스)"IU3:15
2."I'm Nobody (하루만)"Jung Joon-young[14]4:54
Part 6:
No.TitleArtistLength
1."Beautiful Day"Jang Keun-suk[15]3:45

Ratings

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In the table below, the blue numbers represent the lowest ratings and the red numbers represent the highest ratings.

Episode # Original broadcast date Average audience share
TNmS Ratings[16] AGB Nielsen[17]
Nationwide Seoul National Capital Area Nationwide Seoul National Capital Area
1 2013/11/20 2.3% 3.0% 4.3% 4.2%
2 2013/11/21 3.8% 4.0% 3.1% 3.5%
3 2013/11/27 2.5% 2.9% 2.4% 2.8%
4 2013/11/28 2.7% 2.8% 3.3% 3.8%
5 2013/12/04 2.9% 3.0% 3.2% 3.5%
6 2013/12/05 3.2% 3.7% 3.8% 4.1%
7 2013/12/11 2.8% 3.0% 2.9% 2.7%
8 2013/12/12 2.6% 3.0% 3.1% 2.9%
9 2013/12/18 3.0% 3.9% 3.5% 3.2%
10 2013/12/19 2.8% 2.9% 3.5% 3.1%
11 2013/12/25 3.2% 3.6% 3.8% 3.4%
12 2013/12/26 2.6% 3.2% 3.3% 2.9%
13 2014/01/01 2.0% 2.5% 2.4% 2.6%
14 2014/01/02 3.0% 3.8% 3.9% 4.0%
15 2014/01/08 3.0% 3.6% 4.0% 3.8%
16 2014/01/09 2.0% 3.3% 3.8% 3.2%
Average 2.29% 2.79% 3.33% 3.43%

Awards and nominations

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Year Award Category Recipient Result
2013 KBS Drama Awards Excellence Award, Actor in a Miniseries Jang Keun-suk Nominated
Best New Actress IU Won
Best Couple Award[18] Jang Keun-suk and IU Nominated
2014 2nd DramaFever Awards Best Kiss Jang Keun-suk and IU Nominated
9th Seoul International Drama Awards Outstanding Korean Drama Pretty Man Nominated
Outstanding Korean Actress IU Nominated
Outstanding Korean Drama OST "Fever" - Hwanhee Nominated
"I'm Nobody" - Jung Joon-young Nominated
16th Seoul International Youth Film Festival Best Young Actress IU Nominated

References

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  1. ^ Kim, Dong-joo (November 17, 2013). "Pretty Man 4 protagonists' individual posters unveiled". StarN News. Archived from the original on July 27, 2014. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  2. ^ Lee, Cory (November 20, 2013). "Main Actors of New KBS Romcom Bel Ami". TenAsia. Archived from the original on August 9, 2014. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  3. ^ Oh, Jean (November 19, 2013). "IU's star continues to rise: Singer-actress cements leading lady status with new TV drama". The Korea Herald. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  4. ^ Choi, Eun-hwa (November 18, 2013). "Jang Keun Suk Says Pretty Boy is More Important than His Popularity". enewsWorld. Archived from the original on October 31, 2014. Retrieved November 24, 2013.
  5. ^ Lee, Sun-min (November 19, 2013). "Jang Geun-suk is a Beautiful Man". enewsWorld. Korea JoongAng Daily. Archived from the original on October 31, 2014. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  6. ^ "Actor Jang Geun-suk to return to small screen". The Korea Times. November 19, 2013. Archived from the original on September 2, 2023. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  7. ^ Kim, Dong-joo (November 19, 2013). "Pretty Man Jang Geun Seok talks about casting in a new drama". StarN News. Archived from the original on July 27, 2014. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  8. ^ Jeon, Su-mi (October 22, 2013). "IU Confirmed for Pretty Boy with Jang Keun Suk". enewsWorld. Archived from the original on October 31, 2014. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  9. ^ Lee, Sun-min (October 23, 2013). "IU chooses a pretty man". Korea JoongAng Daily. Archived from the original on April 15, 2018. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  10. ^ "K-pop stars make foray into small screen". The Korea Times. January 1, 2014. Archived from the original on January 3, 2014. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  11. ^ Choi, Eun-hwa (November 18, 2013). "Lee Jang Woo Felt Like Dying When Copying IU's Diet". enewsWorld. Archived from the original on October 20, 2014. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  12. ^ Lee, Sun-min (October 8, 2013). "Han Chae-young considers comeback". Korea JoongAng Daily. Archived from the original on October 8, 2013. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  13. ^ Jung, Ji-won (November 20, 2013). "U-KISS' Hoon to Act in Pretty Boy as IU's Younger Brother". enewsWorld. Archived from the original on October 31, 2014. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  14. ^ Lee, Sun-min (January 3, 2014). "Jung releases TV soundtrack song". Korea JoongAng Daily. Archived from the original on January 3, 2014. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  15. ^ Lee, Cory (January 9, 2014). "Jang Keun-suk to Sing Beautiful Day Today". TenAsia. Archived from the original on August 9, 2014. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
  16. ^ "TNmS Daily Ratings: this links to current day-select the date from drop down menu". TNmS Ratings (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 28, 2013. Retrieved November 20, 2013.
  17. ^ "AGB Daily Ratings: this links to current day-select the date from drop down menu". AGB Nielsen Media Research (in Korean). Archived from the original on December 26, 2013. Retrieved November 20, 2013.
  18. ^ "KBS Drama Awards 2013 Nominees". Hancinema. December 24, 2013. Archived from the original on September 17, 2014. Retrieved July 27, 2014.
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