Three anticipated dramas are arriving on the small screen in succession. Drawing attention for the participation of famous actors and writers are <Grand Consort of the 21st Century> starring IU and Byeon Woo-seok; the popular webtoon-based series <Yumi's Cells>; and the new work <Everyone Is Fighting Their Own Worthlessness> by writer Park Hae-young, who penned <My Mister> (2018) and <My Liberation Diary> (2022). Attention is on whether these titles will inject energy into the TV industry this year, which has lacked major hits.

Premiering on MBC at 9:40 p.m. on the 10th, the Friday-Saturday drama <Grand Consort of the 21st Century> is regarded as one of the most anticipated titles of the year. Against the premise that a constitutional monarchy still exists in 21st-century Korea, it depicts a contract-marriage romance between a chaebol woman ‘Seong Hee-ju’ (IU), who has everything yet remains a commoner by status, and ‘Grand Prince Ian’ (Byeon Woo-seok), the son of the king who cannot have anything.

In particular, IU, who has become a ‘guarantee of box-office success’ with each drama she appears in, and Byeon Woo-seok, returning to dramas two years after rising to stardom with <Seonjae Upgo Twieo> (2024), lead the cast. Even before its premiere, <Grand Consort of the 21st Century> ranked No. 1 for TV-OTT drama buzz in the FUNdex list for the fourth week of March. It is the first time since this survey began that a drama yet to air has topped the overall TV-OTT drama buzz rankings.

Director Park Joon-hwa, who helmed the series, said at a production presentation held on the 6th at the Josun Palace Hotel Seoul Gangnam in Gangnam District, Seoul, “There are many Korean elements, but it is filled with material that global audiences can relate to, so I hope people will watch without preconceptions.” As the drama will also be released via the global OTT platform Disney+, they kept viewers worldwide in mind. Regarding comments that the constitutional-monarchy premise recalls <Palace> (2006), he said, “We worked to make it a drama that can remain as good as <Palace>. You will be able to feel the two leads’ charms differently in each episode.”

The tvN drama <Yumi's Cells>, based on the webtoon of the same name, returns with Season 3 on the 13th. It follows what unfolds when Shin Soon-rok (Kim Jae-won), a producer at a publishing house, visits the daily life of Yumi (Kim Go-eun), who has become a renowned writer. First released in 2021, the series won great love from viewers with a direction that, for the first time domestically, combined live action and 3D animation. Season 3 continues from Season 2, which aired in 2022, and unlike the previous 14-episode season, it has been reduced to 8 episodes.

Director Lee Sang-yeob said at a production presentation held on the 7th at The Link Seoul in Guro District, Seoul, “We compactly selected and included the fun parts within eight episodes,” and added, “It cannot be said to be exactly the same as the original. Please check through the work to see what ending it will have.” <Yumi's Cells Season 3> will be pre-released exclusively on TVING with two episodes every Monday at 6 p.m. starting on the 13th, and on tvN it will air one episode each Monday and Tuesday at 8:50 p.m.

Writer Park Hae-young, lauded for reshaping the texture of Korean drama, presents <Everyone Is Fighting Their Own Worthlessness> (hereafter <EFOW>), which will air on JTBC from the 18th. The Saturday-Sunday drama <EFOW> portrays a protagonist consumed by envy and jealousy as the only one not making progress among successful friends in the film industry, and the people around him who try to embrace him.

Actor Koo Kyo-hwan plays ‘Hwang Dong-man’, who, within the renowned film-circle ‘Group of Eight’, has alone failed to debut for 20 years and remains a director-in-training. His counterpart, the planning producer ‘Byeon Eun-a’, is played by actor Go Yoon-jung. Byeon Eun-a discovers freedom and possibility behind the boisterous behavior of Hwang Dong-man. The cast is star-studded, including Oh Jung-se, Park Hae-joon, Choi Won-young, Han Sun-hwa, Bae Jong-ok, and Kang Mal-geum.

Direction is by PD Cha Young-hoon, who directed <Welcome to Samdal-ri> (2023) and <When the Camellia Blooms> (2019). The production team stated, “<EFOW> is a story of people who have halted before worthlessness, finding room to breathe for the first time as they embrace one another despite their deficiencies,” and added, “By not denying envy and jealousy and looking at them transparently, we want to deliver deep empathy and comfort to viewers at the same time.”