Park Yoo Chun ~ Before This South Korean Actor Became a Fallen Star

Park Yoo Chun (aka Micky Yoochun) is a K-drama actor who is now a fallen star. He has lots of issues that have impacted his reputation including drug abuse and tax evasion. It’s too bad that he has been banned from the industry.

Nevertheless, he keeps trying to make a comeback. In a Times of India article dated December 2023, it was announced that he would host a fan party; albeit the gathering would be in Japan.

♦♦ Park Yoo Chun:  Now and Then

My introduction to this actor was in the historical period drama, Sungkyunkwan Scandal (2010). This series is on my list of historical K-dramas that slipped under the radar. He had the lead role and his female lead was Park Min Young. He started his career in entertainment as a singer and was a member of 2 K-Pop groups.

Despite Park Yoo-chun’s difficulties, I rather like this actor. However, his career in K-drama movies and TV shows was certainly short-lived: from 2010 to 2017. Who knows if he will ever return to the screen? But if you are willing to forgive his transgressions and at least watch some of his Korean dramas, here are 3 suggestions:

1. Miss Ripley (2011)
2. Rooftop Prince (2012)
3. A Girl Who Sees Smells (2015)

♦ 1) Miss Ripley (2011); 16 episodes

** Park Yoo Chun plays Yutaka / Song Yoo-hyun, an heir to a Korean-Japanese hotel conglomerate.

Despite his wealth, Yutaka is warm-hearted and humble and very attracted to Miss Ripley. He meets her because they live in the same building. The series is loosely based on the real case of Shin Jeong-ah.

Shin Jeong-ah created an international scandal in 2007-2008 and ended up going to prison when it was revealed that she lied about her academic background. With her falsified credentials, she worked as an assistant art professor at Dongguk University and a chief curator at Sungkok Art Museum.

That’s the real story and the fictional character, Miss Ripley, driven by greed, manipulates anything and anyone to rise to the top; including two men who are vying for her affection.

RATINGS:

• IMDb: 6.4 out of 10 stars
• My Drama List: 6.6 out of 10 stars
• Viki viewers rated this series 8.4 out of 10 stars

TRAILERS/TEASERS:

Trailer. “MISS RIPLEY Full Trailer.” YouTube Video. YouTube, March 22, 2015. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aT2SVUWDcMA.‌

♦ 2) Rooftop Prince (2012); 20 episodes

** Park Yoo Chun plays Lee Gak, a Crown Prince of the Joseon era, who was transported through time to the modern-day Republic of South Korea.

Lee Gak, along with three of his trusted men end up in the residence of a young woman who lives on a rooftop. In modern times, it turns out that the crown prince looks exactly like Yong Tae-Yong, a young man from a wealthy family, who was killed by his envious and ruthless cousin.

You can imagine the cousin’s shock when he saw him again. YIKES! Why is he here? He’s supposed to be dead. Did he not drown when he fell off the yacht?

During the Joseon Era, the wife of the crown prince was murdered. He intended to investigate the crime but he and his men were chased by people who planned to kill him and usurp the throne. Just when it looked like their horses were about to plunge them to their deaths, they ended up diving into the 21^st century.

They landed in the living quarters of a young girl who lives on a rooftop. She lets them stay there and helps them find work so they can pay her. The young girl looks the same as the sister of the crown princess. The crown princess look-alike works for the company that Yong Tae-Yong would have inherited if he had not been murdered.

So now two murder mysteries need to be solved:

• the murder of the crown princess that occurred during the Joseon Era and
• the murder of a young heir that occurred when two cousins met each other on a trip to the USA.

Relationships get complicated, but romance also develops. The comical moments take the edge off the seriousness of solving murder mysteries. There are connections between the past and present that are slowly unraveled.

RATINGS:

• IMDb: 7.7 out of 10 stars
• My Drama List: 8.1 out of 10 stars
• Public reviews published via Google: 4.6 out of 5 stars
• Viki viewers rated this series 9.3 out of 10 stars

TRAILERS/TEASERS:

Smeagol. “Rooftop Prince (2012) Trailer.” YouTube Video. YouTube, December 31, 2020. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkwrNazFSP4.‌

♦ 4) A Girl Who Sees Smells (2015); 16 episodes

** Park Yoo Chun plays Choi Moo-Gak, a detective.

A serial killer is on the loose. Choi Moo-Gak has experienced a tragic loss; his sister was murdered.  He suffers from analgesia (i.e. inability to feel pain or “pain amnesia”). Meanwhile, another person has experienced a similar tragedy. Her parents were murdered and she was hit by a car trying to run away from the killer. She was also in a coma for 6 months.

When she regained consciousness she had lost her memories and did not even know her name. But she woke up with a peculiar supernatural gift: she could see smells. They have no history with each other.  It is a coincidence that her name which she can not remember is also his sister’s name.  When they meet, they not only develop a close relationship, but she uses her gift to help Choi Moo-Gak solve crimes.

There are light-hearted moments but this K-drama series is serious and intense.

RATINGS:

• IMDb: 7.1 out of 10 stars
• My Drama List: 7.9 out of 10 stars
• Public reviews published via Google: 4.5 out of 5 stars
• Viki viewers rated this series 9.3 out of 10 stars

TRAILERS/TEASERS:

Amor Dramas. “The Girl Who See Smells (Trailer).” YouTube Video. YouTube, June 22, 2020. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElJkPxqfXjI.‌