''My Lovely Sam Soon'' (, lit. ''My Name Is Kim Sam-soon'') is a South Korean television series based on the internet novel of the same title by Ji Soo-hyun, which was published on March 9, 2004. Touted as the Korean version of '' Bridget Jones's Diary'', it starred

Kim Sun-a Kim Sun-a (; born October 1, 1973) is a South Korean actress. She is best known for her titular role as Kim Sam-soon in the popular television series ''My Lovely Sam Soon'' (2005). Other notable series include ''City Hall'' (2009), '' Scent of a ...

(who gained 15 pounds for the role),

Hyun Bin Kim Tae-pyung (born September 25, 1982), better known as Hyun Bin, is a South Korean actor. He gained widespread recognition for his role in the 2005 romantic comedy TV drama '' My Name is Kim Sam-soon''. Since then, he has appeared in leading ...

Jung Ryeo-won Jung Ryeo-won (born January 21, 1981) is a South Korean-born Korean Australian actress. She began her entertainment career as a singer in the now-defunct girl group Chakra, and first rose to fame in the hit television series '' My Name Is Kim Sam ...

and

Daniel Henney Daniel Phillip Henney (born November 28, 1979) is an American actor and model. He first came into international prominence with his television debut as Dr. Henry Kim on the Korean drama '' My Lovely Sam Soon'' (2005). He has gone on to star in ...

. The series aired on MBC from June 1 to July 21, 2005 on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 21:55 for 16 episodes. "Sam-soon" is an old-fashioned name in Korean culture. It is translated as "3rd daughter" (''sam'' (삼) is three, ''soon'' (순) is meek or feminine). The romantic comedy-drama series was a huge hit, with an average viewership rating of 37.6% and its peak rating of 49.1% (for the finale) makes it one of the highest-rated

Korean drama Korean dramas (; RR: ''Han-guk deurama''), more popularly known as K-dramas, are television series in the Korean language, made in South Korea. They are popular worldwide, especially in Asia, partially due to the spread of Korean popular cultu ...

s of all time. It also won numerous awards, including the

Baeksang Arts Awards The Baeksang Arts Awards (), also known as the Paeksang Arts Awards, are awards for excellence in film, television and theatre in South Korea. The awards were first introduced in 1965 by Chang Key-young, the founder of the Hankook Ilbo newspap ...

Grand Prize for TV and the Grand Prize at the

MBC Drama Awards The MBC Drama Awards () is an awards ceremony presented by Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) for outstanding achievements in Korean dramas aired on its network. It is held annually in December. Unlike its counterparts in KBS and SBS, MB ...

for Kim Sun-ah.

Synopsis

Kim Sam-soon (

) is loud and brash, yet insecure about her weight. She has always been embarrassed by her old-fashioned first name, and nearing her 30th birthday, she dreams of changing it. She is an excellent baker with a fervent passion for making desserts. On Christmas Eve, Sam-soon gets dumped by her cheating boyfriend (

Lee Kyu-han Lee may refer to: Name Given name * Lee (given name), a given name in English Surname * Chinese surnames Chinese surnames are used by Han Chinese and Sinicized ethnic groups in China, Taiwan, Korea, Vietnam, and among overseas Chinese c ...

) and loses her job. One of the witnesses to her public humiliation is Hyun Jin-heon (

), the owner of upscale French restaurant Bon Appetit. Upon recognizing her talent, Jin-heon hires her as Bon Appetit's new pastry chef. From their first meeting, the two have an antagonistic relationship (she calls him the equally old-fashioned "Sam-shik"), and sparks fly. Jin-heon is the son of a wealthy hotelier (

Na Moon-hee Na Moon-hee (; Na Kyung-ja, ; November 30, 1941) is a South Korean actress. Since 1960, Na has had a prolific acting career in television and film spanning more than five decades. She established a classic Korean mother persona with her TV drama ...

), and his mother constantly nags him about succeeding her in the hotel business. She also keeps setting him up on matchmaking dates, saying his niece Mi-joo (

Seo Ji-hee Seo Ji-hee (born April 4, 1998) is a South Korean actress. Filmography Television series Film Awards and nominations References External links * Seo Ji-hee Fan Cafeat Daum * * 1998 births Living people South Korean television ...

), who hasn't spoken a word since the childhood trauma of her parents' deaths, needs a mother figure. When Sam-soon finds herself in need of (approximately ) to prevent the foreclosure of her mother's house, Jin-heon proposes a deal: in exchange for the money, she agrees to become his pretend girlfriend. They draw up a complicated contract, of which the most important stipulation is that they should never fall in love for real. But as they spend more time together, Sam-soon and Jin-heon grow closer and gradually fall for each other. But just when things are going well, Jin-heon's ex-girlfriend Yoo Hee-jin (

) returns from the United States. Hee-jin had suddenly left Korea years ago, right after a car accident that had killed Jin-heon's older brother, his sister-in-law and a motorcyclist, and left Jin-heon (who was driving) seriously injured. Though Jin-heon's leg eventually recovered, emotional scars remained, a mixture of sorrow, guilt, and anger at Hee-jin's abandonment. But what he didn't know was that Hee-jin had been diagnosed at the time with stomach cancer, and she'd broken up with him because she didn't want to add to the tragedy he was already experiencing. Now in remission, she returns to Korea to ask for a second chance, followed by her Korean-American doctor Henry Kim (

), who is in love with Hee-jin and eager to learn his roots. Upon learning the truth, Jin-heon reconciles with Hee-jin. Broken-hearted, Sam-soon resigns from Bon Appetit, and she and her older sister Yi-young (

Lee Ah-hyun Lee Ah-hyun (born April 13, 1972) is a South Korean actress. She made her acting debut in the television drama In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than ...

) decide to open an online pastry business using Yi-young's settlement from her recent divorce. Meanwhile, Jin-heon can't stop thinking about Sam-soon and realizes that he wants to be with her. After several run-ins in which he sabotages her blind date and immaturely invents reasons to see her, he finally confesses his love for Sam-soon. After a difficult break-up with Hee-jin, Jin-heon proves to Sam-soon's mother and sister that he's serious about her and the couple begin dating happily. Then Hee-jin asks a final favor of Jin-heon, to accompany her back to the U.S. to rejoin her parents there. Sam-soon is initially resistant, but later gives her blessing when Jin-heon reassures her that this journey will be a form of closure for him and Hee-jin. He promises to return after one week. Sam-soon goes once again to the city clerk's office to have her name changed, but finally believing that her name is special and an important part of her identity, changes her mind at the last minute and tears up the papers. Two months pass, with no calls or letters from Jin-heon, and Sam-soon has given up on him and gone on with her life. When Jin-heon eventually returns to Korea, she gives him the cold shoulder. But the misunderstanding is cleared up when two months' worth of postcards gets delivered to Sam-soon's house; as they had been sent to the wrong address all this time. Jin-heon had spent the two months traveling and inspecting hotels all over America; in his desire to be a man worthy of Sam-soon, he is finally ready to take up the reins as his mother's heir. Whatever obstacles come their way (including his mother's continuing benign disapproval of their relationship), Sam-soon and Jin-heon decide to face the future together, doing their best at work and love, and living life to the fullest.

Cast

;Main characters *

– Kim Sam-soon, 30-year-old pastry chef *

– Hyun Jin-heon, 27-year-old owner of Bon Appetit restaurant *

– Yoo Hee-jin, Jin-heon's ex-girlfriend *

– Dr. Henry Kim, Hee-jin's doctor ;Supporting characters *

Kim Ja-ok Kim Ja-ok (October 11, 1951 – November 16, 2014) was a South Korean actress. Kim was born in Busan in 1951. Kim dropped out of Hanyang University majoring in Film. Kim started her acting career after admitted to a public recruit by MBC TV. ...

– Park Bong-sook, Sam-soon's mother *

– Kim Yi-young, Sam-soon's sister *

– Na Hyun-sook, Jin-heon's mother *

– Hyun Mi-joo, Jin-heon's niece * Yoon Ye-hee – Yoon Hyun-sook, CEO Na's assistant *

– Min Hyun-woo, Sam-soon's ex-boyfriend *

Lee Yoon-mi Lee Yoon-mi (born September 25, 1981) is a South Korean actress and entrepreneur. Career Lee Yoon-mi won the top prize in the Super Elite Model Best Talent Awards in 1998. She made her entertainment debut in 2003 as a member of the K-pop/dance ...

– Jang Chae-ri * Won Jong-rye – Chae-ri's mother * Maeng Bong-hak – Sam-soon's father * Kim Sung-kyum – Jin-heon's uncle ;Restaurant staff *

Yeo Woon-kay Yeo is a Chinese, English, and Korean surname. Origins As an English surname, Yeo is a toponymic surname meaning "river", either for people who lived near one of the Rivers Yeo, or any river in general. The word comes from Old English , via sou ...

– Ms. Oh, manager *

Kwon Hae-hyo Kwon Hae-hyo (born November 6, 1965) is a South Korean television, film and stage actor. He is also an activist, involved in the Unite Our People Movement Headquarters, the Abolish the Family Registry and Create Family Equality Organization, the ...

– Lee Hyun-moo, chef * Han Yeo-woon – Lee In-hye, Sam-soon's assistant * Kim Hyun-jung – Jang Young-ja, dining room captain * Kim Ki-bang – Ki-bang, kitchen assistant

Reception

Some critics believe its huge success was due to the show's focus on the life of a single woman in her late twenties. Particularly, the heroine's chubby physical appearance and frank, flawed yet lovable personality broke long-held

stereotype In social psychology, a stereotype is a generalized belief about a particular category of people. It is an expectation that people might have about every person of a particular group. The type of expectation can vary; it can be, for exampl ...

s, greatly increasing its popularity due to its resonance with many Koreans.

Ratings

In the table below, the blue numbers represent the lowest ratings and the red numbers represent the highest ratings.

Soundtrack

The ''My Lovely Sam-soon''

soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrac ...

was released on June 18, 2005. Korean electronica band

Clazziquai Clazziquai Project (Hangul: ), also known as Clazziquai, is a South Korean electropop band that combines several genres including electronic music, acid jazz and house. The band's first short unofficial albums were released online in 2001, spread ...

contributed two songs to the soundtrack: "Be My Love" and "She Is", the former of which became the show's theme song. The show's popularity brought the group increased media and public attention.

Awards and nominations

International broadcast

* The series first aired in Japan on cable channel KNTV from August 15 to October 4, 2005. Reruns followed on satellite channel Wowow beginning July 6, 2006 on Thursdays at 8 p.m., on the

Fuji TV JOCX-DTV (channel 8), branded as and colloquially known as CX, is a Japanese television station based in Odaiba, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Owned and operated by the it is the key station of the Fuji News Network (FNN) and the Fuji Network S ...

network as part of its '' Hallyu Alpha'' programming block beginning February 1, 2010, and on cable channel DATV. * It first aired in the Philippines on the

GMA Network GMA Network (Global Media Arts or simply GMA) is a Philippine free-to-air television and radio network. It is the flagship property of publicly traded GMA Network, Inc. Its first broadcast on television was on October 29, 1961. GMA Network (f ...

from February to April 2006, during which it received a peak viewership rating of 40.2% and an average viewership rating of 34.9%, placing it among the top ten highest rated Asian dramas to air in the country. It was rebroadcast on GMA Network in 2009 and again in 2015. * In Thailand first aired on ITV beginning September 23, 2006, with reruns on Channel 7 from August 11 to September 16, 2008. * In Sri Lanka, it began airing on Rupavahini dubbed in Sinhalese under the name ''Hithata Horen'' in September 2018.

Stage adaptation

A stage adaptation (which was based more on the original novel than the TV series) ran at the Sangmyung Art Hall in

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the Capital city, capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the North Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea ...

from January 21 to September 25, 2011.

Remakes

A 2008 Philippine remake titled ''

Ako si Kim Samsoon ''Ako si Kim Samsoon'' (International title: ''My Name is Kim Samsoon'') is a 2008 Philippine television drama romantic comedy series broadcast by GMA Network. The series is based on a 2005 South Korean television series '' My Lovely Sam Soon''. ...

'' starred

Regine Velasquez Regina Encarnacion Ansong Velasquez ( ; born April 22, 1970) is a Filipina singer, actress, and record producer. She is considered one of the most influential figures in Philippine popular culture and is known for her vocal range and beltin ...

and

Mark Anthony Fernandez Mark Anthony Lacsamana Fernandez (born January 18, 1979) is a Filipino actor. He is the son of actor Rudy Fernandez and actress-politician Alma Moreno. Career He first rose to prominence when he was once a former member of one of the famous ...

. A 2020 Thailand remake titled ''My name is Busaba'' starred

Namthip Jongrachatawiboon Namthip Jongrachatawiboon ( th, น้ำทิพย์ จงรัชตวิบูลย์; ; born 23 November 1982), or nickname Bee ( th, บี), is a Thai film and television actress, singer and model from Exact. Namthip started her ...

and Thanapat Kawila on One31 HD.

References

External links

''My Name Is Kim Sam-soon'' official MBC website

at MBC Global Media
''My Lovely Sam-soon''
at

Korea Tourism Organization The Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) is an organization of the Republic of Korea (South Korea) under the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. It is commissioned to promote the country's tourism industry. The KTO was established in 1962 as a gover ...

* * {{Paeksang Arts Award Grand Prize Television MBC TV television dramas 2005 South Korean television series debuts 2005 South Korean television series endings Korean-language television shows South Korean romantic comedy television series Television shows based on South Korean novels