'Dynamite Kiss' The global female audience stirs at Jang Ki-yong's black hole-like charm.
SBS midweek drama 'Dynamite Kiss' (writers Ha Yoon-ah, Tae Kyung-min; directors Kim Jae-hyun, Kim Hyun-woo) is drawing explosive responses not only domestically but also overseas. It not only ranks No. 1 in weekday drama ratings across all channels but also took No. 1 on the OTT platform Netflix global (non-English 11/24~11/30). At the center of that is actor Jang Ki-yong (playing Gong Ji-hyeok), who is charming, funny, thrilling and even heart-throbbing with chameleon-like appeal.
In episode 7 of 'Dynamite Kiss' broadcast on Dec. 3, Gong Ji-hyeok suffered from the fever of love. Gong Ji-hyeok feels an irresistible attraction to Go Da-rim (played by Ahn Eun-jin), who shared a 'catastrophic-level' kiss, but he can never express his feelings. That's because he firmly misunderstands that Go Da-rim is a mother and a married woman. For Gong Ji-hyeok, who watched his mother live a lifetime of pain because of his father's affair, adultery is a sin that must never be committed.
But because Go Da-rim keeps getting hurt and shaken when left alone, Gong Ji-hyeok's head was dizzy. Then Gong Ji-hyeok heard that Go Da-rim, who had gone to look for a missing child, had not returned, and he ran into the rain and into the mountains to find her. He found Go Da-rim collapsed. The two took shelter from the rain in a nearby cave. Gong Ji-hyeok hugged Go Da-rim, who was shivering from the cold. Soon Gong Ji-hyeok's body also became hot like a furnace.
Gong Ji-hyeok took the hand of Go Da-rim, who was worried about him, and said, "I'm not a good person. I'm shaken. Me too." The love he had suppressed toward Go Da-rim burst forth. But then Kim Sun-woo (played by Kim Mu-jun) appeared. Gong Ji-hyeok believes Kim Sun-woo (played by Kim Mu-jun) is Go Da-rim's husband. Still, for some reason, he grabbed Go Da-rim's hand in front of Kim Sun-woo. He laid bare his feelings in front of Kim Sun-woo.
That night, Gong Ji-hyeok returned home and suffered from the fever of love. He dreamed of the father he had hated his whole life. In the dream the father says it was love too and that you are no different. At that moment the father cruelly said, with Gong Ji-hyeok's face, "You want that woman so badly. You're no different from me." It was a dream that directly reflected Gong Ji-hyeok's pain from loving painfully.
In the end, Gong Ji-hyeok coldly told Go Da-rim, who had come looking after him, "Does your husband know you're here? Don't cross the line." The deep pain of Gong Ji-hyeok, who loves Go Da-rim more than anyone but cannot reveal it, filled his trembling eyes. In the end Gong Ji-hyeok announced his marriage to Yoo Ha-young (played by Woo Da-bi). He chose the happiness of the woman he loves, Go Da-rim, over his own happiness. It was Gong Ji-hyeok's painful way of loving.
Early in the series, Jang Ki-yong boosted the show's atmosphere by delivering everything from the handsome image of a rom-com male lead to sly comic acting, and from the point of the "fever of love" he began to show tender and heartbreaking emotional lines. Jang Ki-yong conveyed the pain of that love in his gaze at co-stars, facial expressions, speech and voice, heightening immersion in the drama. Especially in scenes reflecting the character's confusion, he instantly transformed and delivered an intense performance that drew admiration. The handsome yet funny male lead fell into a painful love, striking viewers' hearts.
A rom-com's essential condition for success is the charm of the male lead. Jang Ki-yong is showing the 'completed form of a rom-com male lead' by capturing viewers' eyes and hearts with a variety of charms scene by scene. Jang Ki-yong's global sweep of female hearts through No. 1 global 'Dynamite Kiss' is likely to continue.
[photo] SBS 'Dynamite Kiss' broadcast capture
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