A sweet love story warmed the nation during the scorching summer of 2004.

The 16-episode soap opera “Full House” aired on KBS from July 14 to Sept. 2, 2004, weaving a tale of love that blossomed under one roof, as the title says, “full” of happiness.

In the drama, Han Ji-eun, an aspiring scriptwriter, lives in a house nestled along the beautiful shoreline, a house called the “Full House,” which her late father built. Two of her acquaintances deceive her into believing she has won a free vacation. While she is away, they sell the Full House. She later finds that the house was purchased by a famous actor, Lee Young-jae. To get the house back, she sets up a contract with the star by which she works as his maid. Living together, the couple doesn’t get along with each other at first. As they eat together and clean together, they keep fighting and making up. Although complications continue to arise, they slowly become attracted to each other.

The show is based on the smash-hit namesake comic book “Full House,” written and illustrated by Won Soo-yeon in the early 1990s. Almost everyone in middle or high school in those years, young women in particular, heard about or read this comic book. Song Hye-kyo, who played the heroine in the TV version, too, was no exception.

“As a middle school student, I read the romance comics and soon fell head over heels in love with the male lead, Ryder, literally. He often appeared in my dreams. I’ve always dreamed of the comic strip being turned into a soap opera someday, and wished that I could take the role of the female lead, if that were to happen. Now, my dreams have come true,” said the actress in an interview





As the news that the sensational comic book would be made into a soap opera hit the airwaves, and that the TV producer would cast two celebrities of the time -- famous pop singer Rain, who uses his real name, Jung Ji-joon, in his acting career, and actress Song Hye-kyo, who had already risen to stardom, both at home and abroad, with her previous 2000 hit series “Autumn in My Heart” -- the drama garnered lots of attention even before it aired. The drama began with ratings of more than 21 percent and its final episode peaked ratings of around 40 percent of the national market.

When the production hit the small screen, audiences soon found themselves falling in love with the heroine, Han Ji-eun, who pretends to be a smart and shrewd person but who seems to be somewhat clumsy, and with the hero, Lee Young-jae, who has a short fuse and is obsessed with cleanliness.

The heroine has a positive attitude. She shouts aloud, “Aja Aja, Fighting!" (아자아자 파이팅!), which means in English, “Cheer up!,” whenever she faces difficulties. She calls the hero, “Baptong" (밥통), a rice cooker that can refer to an idiot. Both acts sent messages of hope and humor to audiences across the nation. One of the highlights of the entire series is a scene where the couple sings a children’s song, “Three Bears" (곰세마리), with cute dance moves added for visual effect.

Prior to broadcasting, the actress said in an interview that, “In my previous work, I’ve only played very innocent, prude characters, who are careful about their behavior and words. However, this time, Han Ji-eun is a completely different character. She is so bubbly and lively that I could say she is a bit bizarre and freaky. Thanks to this role, I’ve noticed that my personality, too, has become more bright and lively.”



The drama was lauded as being well-made, even better than the original comic book itself. Critics attributed its success to the lovely romance that the actress and the singer- actor harmoniously sparked.

Jung said that his long-cherished dream was to become an actor, not a singer. “Thanks to this role in this amazing drama, I’ve learned how to act, working together and keeping in tune with the actors and actresses and with the staff.”

After its run at home, “Full House” was aired across East Asia, starting in mainland China, and then in Taiwan, Malaysia and Singapore, too. To many people’s surprise, viewership ratings abroad exceeded those of the mega-hit “Daeganggeum" (대장금), also known as “Jewel in the Palace.” The final episode saw some of the highest ratings ever in Thailand of around 64 percent.



“Full House” was filmed mainly in a single house near Suki Beach in Sido-ri, Ongjin-gun County, Incheon. As the drama wrapped up, hugely successful, the site became a popular tourist mecca, especially attracting tourists from across East Asia.

Nestled by the seashore, the house had seawater lapping right at its foundation. One Singaporean visitor said, “It’s so romantic to see the house almost merging into the water with the scenic nature unfolding before our eyes. Even my friend, with whom I came here together, didn’t see the drama, but seems in awe of the landscape around here.”

Sorry to say, however, the building was torn down in 2013.

By Sohn JiAe
Korea.net Staff Writer
Photos: KBS
jiae5853@korea.kr