One of the most highly-anticipated K-drama of 2022, “Our Blues” (우리들의 블루스) is set to premiere this weekend! The series has been gaining massive attention among fans for featuring real life couple Shin Min Ah and Kim Woo Bin, who have been in a relationship for eight years.
For those who are curious, the series is directed by Kim Kyu Tae, while the screenplay was done by Noh Hee Kyung, who’s known for her previous works such as “That Winter, The Wind Blows”, “It’s Okay, That’s Love”, and also “Live”.
Airing for 16 episodes, the series features an ensemble cast that include Lee Byung Hun, Cha Seung Won, Han Ji Min, in addition to the two well-known Hallyu stars mentioned above, among others! To get all you fans prepped up for the upcoming K-drama, we came up with a list of things that fans need to know about “Our Blues”.
1. A never-before-seen format of storytelling
For those who are curious, “Our Blues” is an omnibus-style drama that explores the sweet, sour and bitter life stories of 14 diverse characters amidst the hustle and bustle of Jeju Island. Each episode tells the story from the point of view of one or two characters in focus, with the other characters remaining in the same universe.
Lee Byung Hun, who starred as Lee Dong Seok, hilariously revealed, “I actually didn’t know the name of my character. What’s interesting about an omnibus drama is that in one episode you’re the lead, and in the next one, you’re no longer the main character. For instance, in the series, there’s also the character Han Su (played by seasoned actor Cha Seung Won). And because I’m so used to playing the lead role, I was like, ‘Oh, I must be Han Su’.”
The hunky actor continued, “So I read through the script and I was like, ‘I love this character! This is going to be so much fun! So I should feel this way when I am acting him out in this scene.’ And then I got to the end of volume two of the script, and it says he’s extremely good at basketball because he’s really tall. He even dunks and he was the tallest of his class back in high school. Then I knew for sure. Okay, that must be me. Only later I found out the character wasn’t mine.”
2. Lee Byung Hun & Shin Min Ah teaming up together for the third time
Notably, the upcoming drama marks Lee Byung Hun’s reunion project with his co-star Shin Min Ah. As revealed by the former himself, the duo previously worked together as siblings on the latter’s debut drama, “Beautiful Days” (2001). They were then reunited a few years later in 2005 movie “A Bittersweet Life”.
“Actually in my debut piece, he was my male counterpart because most of my scenes were with him. While in ‘A Bittersweet Life’, our characters did not have the average relationship. This time, in ‘Our Blues’ I felt like I had met three different people, maybe because we had such different roles before. But I did feel slightly more comfortable with him,” the 38-year-old actress remarked.
3. Shin Min Ah on acting as a mother for the first time in her career
When asked on why did she take on this challenge of taking on the role of a mother in “Our Blues”, Min Ah said, “Min Seon Ah (her character in the series) is a character who is still dwelling in her pain. This was my first role as a mother of a child. There was more pressure for me to depict Seon-a’s emotions, emotional changes and how she overcomes her pain, rather than the fact that she’s a mother.”
“I thought it would be very difficult, but weirdly I had an understanding of her character. I felt her pain. Her pain, and her will to overcome that pain were what I thought would be exciting for me to try to convey. I wanted to take on this challenge. Seon-a’s character was the biggest reason I took on this piece. Her emotions and her personality were relatable for me,” she added during the press conference.
4. “Our Blues” marks Kim Woo Bin’s comeback in acting after recovering from cancer
In the drama, Woo Bin takes on the role as Park Jung Joon, a ship captain with a kind-hearted personality. The former fashion model spoke to the media about his much-awaited comeback, “To begin with, I’m nervous. It’s been quite some time so I am nervous. I did appear on a scripted variety show and some commercials, but I’m so happy and thankful that I’m able to appear on a drama series and be able to meet you all.”
Talking about his character in the drama, Woo Bin said that he emphasis on trying to put myself in Jung Joon’s shoes. According to him, “I tried to understand how he grew up and the emotions he feels. So I followed writer’s Noh’s script and followed the emotional journey of Jung Joon.”
He added, “And when I was getting prepared for the role, I wanted to understand the environment that he lives in so I went over to Jeju earlier than I needed to and met and talked with some boat captains. Sometimes I just followed around haenyeo divers to see how they commute and also learned how to trim fish. So I put a lot of time into trying to understand him.”
5. Real life lovebirds Kim Woo Bin & Shin Min Ah on getting involved in the same acting project
As we mentioned above, this also marks the first time that Min Ah is starring in the same drama with her longtime BF, much to the delight of many fans. Sadly though, it was revealed that the two are not gonna appear as lovers in the series! 🙁
In commenting about this, Writer Noh said, “I knew they wouldn’t join the project if they appeared as a couple. When I was casting them, I did tell them that they would not appear as a couple and they would each have a romantic relationship with someone else. And thankfully they were fine with that. I wanted to cast them because they are great actors. I didn’t think much about anything else. They’re cool and professional.”
6. The key message in “Our Blues”
“People say, every soul has a scar. This drama shows those scars,” Byung Hun told the press. “Living life itself means trying to forget those scars, and trying to overcome those scars. It’s a repetition of those two actions. Those parts will show through all of the characters in this drama to the viewers.”
He added, “The shape and form of those scars and challenges will be different. But people with wounds, and how they overcome those scars will be manifested in this drama in a touching way and impart hope.”
Bonus:
7. BTS’s Jimin to sing his first solo OST for “Our Blues”
‘Our Blues’ will premiere on April 9, 9PM KST and Jimin’s OST will be the opening act! #JiminOSTlsComing pic.twitter.com/pSibpFOD6R
— ⁷ (slow) (@btschaneIs) April 7, 2022
A source from Yamyam Entertainment, the production company in charge of the original soundtrack for the series relayed (as per Soompi), “Jimin will be participating as an OST singer for tvN’s new Saturday-Sunday drama ‘Our Blues.’ Since the member of the world-class group BTS will be joining us, we will energise the drama with a masterpiece OST song that harmonizes well with the flow of the story.” We can’t hear to hear the song when it’s out soon!
“Our Blues” is set to debut on Netflix on 9th April. Watch the trailer here:
Images courtesy of Netflix/tvN.
