Love Rain

Huh, script reading already? Love Rain isn’t scheduled to air till 2012, but the main cast convened recently for its first script reading, which included actors Jang Geun-seok, Yoon-ah, Kim Shi-hoo, Sohn Eun-seok, Hwang Bora, and Seo In-gook. (I use the term scheduled loosely; technically Love Rain isn’t scheduled at all, in that it doesn’t have a concrete timeslot, but producers are aiming to secure a broadcast slot for early next year.)
Regarding the drama’s story, Yoon PD said, “There were a lot of one-sided loves in the ’70s era, a time period that the actors haven’t experienced for themselves.
 It was also a happy time, and the script reflects a lot of the emotions and experience that still linger in my memory.” According to one production company source, “Veteran PD Yoon Suk-ho led the proceedings and explained everything in detail, not leaving out even the smallest thing.”
Yoon-ah, playing two roles as a university student in the 1970s and her plucky daughter in 2012, said, “The two characters have conflicting traits, so I felt the burden of playing both roles. But after working with the director, writer, and other actors I feel like we fit well together, which is reassuring.”

Sounds like Yoon PD has a very specific idea for what he wants to achieve, and I predict the drama will heavily bear his imprint: Scenic locales, a mood-enhancing soundtrack, a strong dose of sentimentality, and lots of melodramangst. In all the news about Yoon Suk-ho and his young cast, I hadn’t paid as much attention to the writer, but now that I remember that Oh Soo-yeon worked on Season Dramas Autumn Fairy Tale (scriptwriter) and Winter Sonata (initial writer), as well as the Cinderella story All About Eve and the extremely angsty A Star’s Lover, I’m feeling warier than ever.
I love a good melodrama and I’m not averse to angst, but I hope Love Rain’s pure-love and fated-through-the-generations premise can convey youthful melodrama in a new way, rather than giving us Hallyu Dramas Redux.