''My Girlfriend Is a Gumiho'' (; also known as ''My Girlfriend Is a Nine-Tailed Fox'') is a 2010 South Korean romantic comedy television series starring

Lee Seung-gi Lee Seung-gi (; born January 13, 1987) is a South Korean singer, actor, host, and entertainer. He has numerous hit songs as a singer such as "Because You're My Woman", "Will You Marry Me", "Return" and "The Ordinary Man". He has garnered furt ...

and

Shin Min-a Shin Min-a (; born 5 April 1984) is a South Korean model and actress best known for starring in television dramas ''A Love to Kill'' (2005), ''My Girlfriend Is a Nine-Tailed Fox'' (2010), ''Arang and the Magistrate'' (2012), ''Oh My Venus'' ...

. It aired on SBS from August 11 to September 30, 2010 on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 22:00 for 16 episodes.

Synopsis

Cha Dae-woong (

Lee Seung-Gi Lee Seung-gi (; born January 13, 1987) is a South Korean singer, actor, host, and entertainer. He has numerous hit songs as a singer such as "Because You're My Woman", "Will You Marry Me", "Return" and "The Ordinary Man". He has garnered furt ...

) is a normal college student, with ambitions of becoming an action star. One day, he accidentally releases a

gumiho A kumiho or gumiho (, literally " nine-tailed fox") is a creature that appears in the folktales on East Asia and legends of Korea. It is similar to the Chinese and the Japanese . It can freely transform, among other things, into a beautiful woma ...

(

Shin Min-ah Shin may refer to: Biology * The front part of the human leg below the knee * Shinbone, the tibia, the larger of the two bones in the leg below the knee in vertebrates Names * Shin (given name) (Katakana: シン, Hiragana: しん), a Japanese g ...

), a legendary fox with nine tails who was sealed inside a painting by Samshin Grandmother (三神). Fleeing the scene, Dae-woong suffers a life-threatening fall and is only saved by the gumiho giving him her "fox bead" (여우 구슬). When Dae-woong awakes and meets a mysterious and very beautiful girl, he initially treats her as eccentric or mentally ill, before she discloses that she is actually a gumiho in human form. According to myth, gumihos eat men's livers, so Dae-woong is scared out of his wits, and the gumiho takes advantage of his fear by sticking by his side. He names her "Mi-ho," and keeps her happy by buying her beef and hiding her true identity. Mi-ho wants nothing more than to become human, so they strike a deal: she'll lend him her mystical fox bead so that with his increased speed and strength, he'll be able to do difficult stunts, and in exchange he'll help her become human. As time passes, they get to know each other better and Dae-woong is charmed by how Mi-ho looks at the world with childlike wonder. Enter Park Dong-joo (

No Min-woo No Min-woo (; born May 29, 1986) is a South Korean actor, musician, singer and songwriter. He is also known under the stage names ICON and MINUE. He debuted as a drummer in TRAX in 2004, and left the band two years later. In 2008, he began act ...

), a half-human, half-supernatural being, whose cover identity is a working veterinarian. Dong-joo tells Mi-ho that she'll be able to turn human if she follows these instructions: She must drink Dong-joo's blood then place her fox bead inside a human's body for 100 days. Once she does this, her supernatural self will start to die, gradually. Her gumiho energy will slowly empty away while her bead will live in the human for 100 days and take in his energy. And when she reclaims her bead, she will become human. Mi-ho happily complies, and Dae-woong accepts her bead. However, Dong-joo deliberately withheld the information that this process will result in the human's death. Mi-ho and Dae-woong thus fall in love without knowing the consequences of fulfilling her goal: in 100 days, Dae-woong will die if Mi-ho becomes fully human, but Mi-ho will die if the bead isn't returned.

Cast

Main

as Cha Dae-woong ** Hyunwoo as young Cha Dae-woong :An immature aspiring actor who lost his parents at a young age, and was subsequently raised by his affluent grandfather and aunt. When his grandfather tries to enroll him in a strict boarding school, Dae-woong runs away and eventually ends up at a Buddhist temple, where a woman's voice tells him to draw nine tails on a painting of a fox. He then meets a girl who informs him that she was the gumiho in the painting (he later calls her Mi-ho). Fearing that she would eat him, he tries to keep her happy by buying her meat ( Korean beef in particular, her favorite) and hiding the fact that she's a gumiho from others. As they spend more time together, he's surprised to see that instead of the ferocious figure of legend, Mi-ho is cute and full of wonder, and falls in love with Mi-ho. *

as Gu Mi-ho/Park Seon-ju/Gil-dal :A legendary nine-tailed fox (or "

" in Korean mythology) who was sealed inside a painting for 500 years. She has dreamed of becoming a human for centuries, but once rumors spread that she's a femme fatale who eats men's livers, and no human man would agree to marry her. She has superhuman strength, can run exceptionally fast, jump great heights, and can identify people and objects from great distances by smell. However, she has a mortal fear of water, since her fox bead (which houses her life energy or " qi") is made from goblin fire. After Dae-woong has an almost fatal fall from a cliff, she gives him her fox bead to keep him alive. *

as Park Dong-joo :A half-human, half-supernatural being who disguises himself as an ordinary

veterinarian A veterinarian (vet), also known as a veterinary surgeon or veterinary physician, is a medical professional who practices veterinary medicine. They manage a wide range of health conditions and injuries in non-human animals. Along with this, vet ...

. His initial mission was to capture the gumiho and put her back into the painting, but upon seeing Mi-ho, he changes his mind as she is the spitting image of Gil-dal, a goblin he'd once loved centuries ago, who was betrayed by her human lover and died at Dong-joo's hand. Suspecting that Mi-ho is Gil-dal's reincarnation, he acts as her mentor, watching over her and supplying her with information about humans. He also constantly warns her that humans cannot be trusted. Dong-joo tells Mi-ho how she can become human, deliberately withholding the fact that Dae-woong will die in the process. He readies all the necessary identifications and papers under the name "Park Seon-joo," which Mi-ho would assume once the 100 days have passed and she's become fully human. He also started to have feelings for Mi-ho. *

Park Soo-jin Park Soo-jin (born November 27, 1985) is a South Korean actress, singer and model. She was a member of K-pop girl group Sugar from 2001 to 2006, then she transitioned to acting in 2007. Park has also hosted ''Tasty Road'' since 2010, a cable sh ...

as Eun Hye-in :Dae-woong's older classmate and love interest whom he calls "noona"; Dae-woong stopped liking Hye-in after spending some time with Mi-ho. When Mi-ho becomes Dae-woong's girlfriend, she becomes jealous, and attempts to throw a wrench into their relationship by investigating Mi-ho's true identity.

Supporting

Sung Dong-il Sung Dong-il (born April 27, 1967) is a South Korean actor. Sung made his acting debut in theater in 1987, then was recruited at the 1991 SBS open talent auditions. He rose to fame as the comic, Jeolla dialect-speaking character "Red Socks" in ...

as Ban Doo-hong :Stunt director and head of the action school that Dae-woong attends. He is also the widowed father of Ban Sun-nyeo. Doo-hong idolizes Hong Kong star

Chow Yun-fat Chow Yun-fat (born 18 May 1955), previously known as Donald Chow, is a Hong Kong actor. He is perhaps best known for his collaborations with filmmaker John Woo in the five Hong Kong action heroic bloodshed films: ''A Better Tomorrow'', ''A Be ...

and tries to imitate him in his appearance and manner of speaking. He falls for Dae-woong's aunt Cha Min-sook. *

Yoon Yoo-sun Yoon Yoo-sun (born January 17, 1969) is a famous South Korean actress. She began her career as a child actress in 1975, and continues to be active in film and television, notably in ''The Story of Two Women'' (1994), ''Even If the Wind Blows'' ( ...

as Cha Min-sook :Dae-woong's aunt. She was never married and is very obedient to her father. She's unable to express her feelings for Ban Doo-hong, causing her to often make a fool of herself in his presence. *

Byun Hee-bong Byun Hee-bong (born Byun In-chul; June 8, 1942) is a South Korean actor. Career Byun In-chul was born in Jangseong County, South Jeolla Province, and attended Salesian High School in Gwangju. He took up law at Chosun University before dropping ...

as Cha Poong :Dae-woong's strict but loving grandfather. He's concerned that his spoiled and shallow grandson isn't making good choices in life. He becomes fond of Mi-ho upon meeting her, and sees that being with her has made Dae-woong more mature and responsible. He eventually accepts Dae-woong's dream of becoming an actor. *Kim Ho-chang as Kim Byung-soo :Dae-woong's best friend and classmate in action school. He is supportive of Dae-woong, and secretly likes Sun-nyeo. *

Hyomin Park Sun-young (born May 30, 1989), known professionally as Hyomin, is a South Korean singer, songwriter and actress. She is a member of South Korean girl group T-ara, which went on to become one of the best-selling girl groups of all time and ...

as Ban Sun-nyeo :Dae-woong's friend and the daughter of Ban Doo-hong. After she gets over her crush on Dae-woong, she finally realizes that Byung-soo likes her and reciprocates his love.

Special appearances

Im Hyun-sik Im Hyun-sik (born December 31, 1945) is a South Korean actor. He is best known for his leading role in the family drama ''Three Families Under One Roof'' (1986-1993), and supporting roles in the period epics '' Hur Jun'' (1999) and ''Dae Jang G ...

as Buddhist monk (ep 1, 8, 15) *

Lee Soo-geun Lee Soo-geun (; born February 10, 1975) is a South Korean comedian who has worked on a number of comedy shows on South Korean television. He began his career as a comedian on KBS ''Gag Concert'', and is under the management of SM Culture & Con ...

as police officer (ep 4) *

Uee Kim Yu-jin (born April 9, 1988), better known by her stage name Uee (sometimes romanized as U-), is a South Korean singer and actress. She is best known for being a former member of South Korean girl group After School from 2009 to 2017, and ...

as art major in college (ep 5)

Park Shin-hye Park Shin-hye (, born February 18, 1990) is a South Korean actress and singer. She gained recognition as a child on TV shows such as ''Stairway to Heaven'' (2003), and ''Tree of Heaven'' (2006). Later on, she would achieve further success when ...

and

Lee Hong-gi Lee Hong-gi (; born March 2, 1990), also known mononymously as Hongki, is a South Korean singer, actor, and media personality. He is best known as the front man of rock band F.T. Island. In 2015, Lee debuted as a solo artist with the release ...

were cast members of the

writers A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, plays ...

' previous drama, ''

You're Beautiful "You're Beautiful" is a song by English singer-songwriter James Blunt. It was written by Blunt, Sacha Skarbek and Amanda Ghost for Blunt's debut album, ''Back to Bedlam'' (2004). It was released as the third single of the album in 2005. In t ...

''. *

as Go Mi-nyeo (ep 6) *

as Jeremy (ep 16) * Kim Ji-young as Samshin grandmother (ep 15, 16)

Original soundtrack

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Ratings

Source
TNS Media Korea

Accolades

References

External links

''My Girlfriend Is a Gumiho'' official SBS website
* *
Filming Locations Map
{{Hong sisters 2010 South Korean television series debuts 2010 South Korean television series endings Korean-language television shows Television shows written by the Hong sisters Seoul Broadcasting System television dramas South Korean romantic comedy television series South Korean fantasy television series Television series by Bon Factory Worldwide