MBC ‘21st-Century Consort of the Grand Prince’
Actor Heo Nam-jun made a surprise appearance in ‘21st-Century Consort of the Grand Prince’, a welcome sight for viewers.
The MBC Friday-Saturday drama ‘21st-Century Consort of the Grand Prince’ is a romance set in a Republic of Korea under a constitutional monarchy, depicting Seong Hee-ju (played by IU), a woman who has everything as a conglomerate heiress yet feels stifled because her status is that of a commoner, and Grand Prince Lee An (played by Byun Woo-seok), a man who is a son of the king but cannot have anything. As the show has been drawing intense buzz since its premiere, Heo Nam-jun joined as Kim Yeon-jun, the man Hee-ju meets on a blind date, bringing a burst of freshness.
In episode 2, which aired on the 11th, Yeon-jun had a brief yet intense encounter with Hee-ju at the Royal Museum of Art. Having already been understanding when Hee-ju suddenly rescheduled their matchmaking appointment, his generous consideration continued even during the blind date. Gauging the mood of Hee-ju, who was engrossed in the artworks, Yeon-jun hesitated shyly, and his awkward demeanor brought smiles to viewers. In particular, his effort to keep the conversation going, with a tense voice and a flushed face, produced a fresh kind of chemistry.
But soon, Yeon-jun was taken aback by Hee-ju treating their relationship strictly as business. Saying she would let him spend money for a lifetime, she pressed him, “Can you devote your whole self so that I can rise all the way to the top?” Overwhelmed by her arrogance, and at a loss in the face of continued rudeness, he said, “I think our marriage would be difficult,” clearly declining and leaving a bitter aftertaste and a sense of regret.
Heo Nam-jun vividly drew the guileless side of a person flustered by an overbearing counterpart, leaving a deep impression despite the brief appearance. He returns on May 8 as the lead, Cha Segye, in the new SBS Friday-Saturday drama ‘Brave New World’. After a bold transformation into a ‘vicious chaebol’ that is 180 degrees removed from ‘21st-Century Consort of the Grand Prince’, expectations are rising for a highly polished performance.
