![]() However, I do believe the amount of criticism this news elicited was proof of how writer Im was losing favor with her audience, and the complaints were starting to pile up quickly, especially as Baek Ok-dam’s role was expanded just as other stars were being fired. The writer’s reps defended the casting by saying that Baek’s use of a stage name wasn’t to hide their relationship, and personally I don’t think this kind of connection-using is very rare in showbiz anyway. (She is the daughter of Im’s older brother.) This is not Baek’s first drama, but her debut role and follow-up were both in aunt Im’s dramas, Ahyundong Madam and New Gisaeng Story, so you can see where denying nepotism accusations might not be too convincing. The drama, which airs in the early evenings (7:15 p.m.), was sanctioned for material unsuitable for the younger audiences watching at that time.ĭissatisfaction with writer Im Sung-han mounted when it became known that one of the cast members, Baek Ok-dam, is her niece. More on that in a moment.Īs we know, makjang dramas tend to get a lot of leeway into depicting extreme situations, but apparently Aurora Princess went far enough as to receive warnings from the Korea Communications Standards Commissions, which cited the drama’s multiple immoral storylines and crude language as violations of its standards. Some actors gave interviews expressing their dissatisfaction and viewers started calling the drama “Im Sung-han’s Death Note.” (I’m surprised at how vocal the actors have been in criticizing this show, but that indicates that the level of distress was pretty high.) Nobody was safe-the firing spree culminated with writer Im eventually killing off the hero. That was just the beginning, because writer Im began writing out more and more actors as the show went on (more than a dozen in total), killing some off so unceremoniously that people half-joked that Aurora Princess was turning into a survival drama. The departures were also criticized by viewers, who complained that they made no sense in the story. gave no reason or excuse and just said he didn’t know why.” He added that there is usually a minimum level of courtesy and ethics involved in situations like this, which this case did not meet. “The night before the last day, I was shooting late until dawn, and the next day around noon I received a call from a broadcast executive telling me that I wouldn’t be appearing from this next episode onward. ![]() “I can’t comprehend it at all,” Sohn said. Sohn had a day’s notice when he was given a script that sent his character abruptly off to America. Viewers were surprised because the actors had been given romantic pairings and storylines that would not get finished, and the actors were surprised because they’d been given no warning. ![]() This occured fairly early on, while the drama had only aired 30-something episodes. It wasn’t the firing itself that was problematic (of Sohn Chang-min and Oh Dae-kyu) but the manner in which it was done, which is to say with what many saw as a lack of professional courtesy. The plot was pointed out as a bit makjang, but that’s farily standard for the format, so it wasn’t until the show unexpectedly wrote out two main characters that it started to attract attention. Well, as long as there aren’t any more changes to befall us in the last week, which given the circumstances doesn’t seem entirely out of the question.Īurora Princess kicked off in May of 2013 as a 120-episode daily, and for the first month or two, it proceeded without too much fuss. The drama is heading into its final week, so now’s a good a time as any to give an overall summary of all of its twists and turns. ![]() (Hint: Most of this can be traced to one person, writer Im Sung-han.) Lesson learned: Never underestimate the extent to which a drama can go crazy. If ever there were a case of a drama having more drama behind the cameras than in front of them, this would be it.Īurora Princess is a long-running daily series on MBC and therefore went under our radars at first, but the constant reports of its outrageous behind-the-scenes antics grew too crazy to ignore it’s the kind of stuff girlfriday and I would send each other with comments like “Omg, can you believe this?” and “What the heck are they smoking over there?” Just when you thought they’d reached some kind of quota on how much lunacy to pile into one production, the drama one-upped itself with fresh insanity. ![]() And while it’s not the type of drama we’d typically be devoting a lot of attention to, it’s worth looking at if only as the cautionary tale of what not to do when making a show. We’ve been following the ever-evolving story of Aurora Princess with raised eyebrows for months, as it has become a fixture in the headlines for its parade of shenanigans. 186 DecemAugWhen dramas go crazy: Aurora Princess, a case study by javabeans ![]()
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