Kang So-ra is a popular South Korean actress who made her acting debut in the 2009 horror film, “4th Period Mystery”. Her claim to fame was her titular role in the 2011 blockbuster, Sunny. She also earned critical acclaim for her performances in several television dramas. But if you haven’t caught up yet on Kang So-ra’s list of work, here’s a quick rundown of K-dramas that she starred in!
Revolutionary Love (2017)
In this 2017 rom-com, Kang So-ra plays Baek Joon, a young lady with street-smarts to support herself. Baek Joon graduated from a good university, but she refuses to settle on a permanent job in a company leaving her to work multiple part-time jobs. This decision was partly caused by what her father went through. He was wronged by Gangsu Group after being a loyal employee for a long time.
Baek Joon was doing well for herself until she met Byun Hyuk (Choi Si-won) the heir to the Gangsu Group of companies. He has quite the happy-go-lucky attitude and truly enjoys the perks of being a chaebol. He is sensitive and warm-hearted, but also quite the womanizer. This lifestyle constantly led Baek Joon into trouble, so he was seen as a disappointment by his father. Strangely, the patriarch vents his frustration on Kwon Jae-hoon (Gong Myung), the son of the family’s loyal driver, who had been incarcerated before because he took the fall for Hyuk’s mistake. Despite Jae-hoon’s hatred towards Hyuk, he also still finds himself in the same position as an employee of the Gangsu Group and the fall guy for Hyuk’s foolishness.
When Baek Joon finally stood his ground against his father, he got cut off and learned what it’s like to be poor. This brought him closer to Baek Joon and Jae-hoon, and they all came together to expose the corruption in the Gangsu Group.
My Lawyer, Mr Jo (2016)
Despite his humble beginnings growing up in an orphanage, Jo Deul-ho (Park Shin-yang) turned out to be a promising prosecutor. He was married to Jang Hae-kyung (Park Sol-mi) but when he saw corruption first-hand in the prosecutor’s office and learned that his childhood friend was made to be the fall guy, Deulo-ho had to do something. Following what was right, he reports what he knows which caused him to lose everything.
Three years later, Deul-ho is still trying to rebuild his life, and he had to do it from scratch. In a run-down neighborhood, he put up a small law office. He happens to meet Lee Eun-jo (Kang So-ra) who mistakes him for a pickpocket. Lee Eun-jo is a rookie attorney who works at the law firm owned by Deul-ho’s ex-father-in-law. As they strike up a connection, they learn of new developments from the corruption case in the prosecutor’s office. They set on a journey to unearth the truth which also brought Deul-ho on a path to build his name again in the law practice.
Warm and Cozy (2015)
In this rom-com, Kang So-ra plays the 29-year-old Lee Jung-joo. She struggled all her life, but couldn’t seem to get a break, which left her bitter and angry. In her seven years as an administrative employee in an underwear company in Seoul, she never missed a day of work. However, her hard work didn’t seem to pay off because that didn’t stop her from losing her job. As if that wasn’t enough, Jung-joo also lost her house and her boyfriend. Despondent, she unwillingly sets off to start a new life on Jeju Island.
There, she meets Baek Gun-woo (Yoo Yeon-seok), the chef and owner of the restaurant “Warm and Cozy.” They previously met during their nineteenth birthday when they were mistaken for twins. Jung-joo first mistakes him for a con artist, because of his slick way with words. His lies may have worked with others, but it didn’t hold water with Jung-joo.
Gun-woo has always been a laidback romantic from a wealthy family who only does what he feels like doing. He and Jung-joo often clashed because of their different personalities and priorities, but all that back and forth inevitably resulted in a mutual attraction. Soon enough, everything just went “warm and cozy.”
Misaeng: Incomplete Life (2014)
In this 2014 workplace drama, the story revolves aorund Jang Geu-rae (Yim Si-wan) who mastered the game of Go since he was a child. When his plans of becoming a professional Go player did not push through, Geu-rae was forced to take an office job as an intern at a large company called One International.
Even without formal skills or training, Geu-rae joins Sales Team 3 as a two-year contract employee. This is where he crossed paths with Ahn Young-yi (Kang So-ra), a smart and eager fellow intern. They both tried their best to impress their boss, but they realized that it will be very challenging especially if they have to keep up with the ambitious employee Jang Baek Ki. However, Geu-rae tries to learn the ropes and adapt to the corporate culture using the principles he learned in baduk.
This drama is based on the webtoon series of the same title by a writer named Yoon Tae-ho. The series became a cultural phenomenon also evidenced by their high viewership ratings in South Korea.
Doctor Stranger (2014)
Doctor Stranger is one of the most successful medical dramas which starred Lee Jong-suk as Park Hoon. In this story, Park Hoon and his father were tricked into going into North Korea and were denied access to go back to the south. There, Park Hoon was trained by his father to be a doctor. Soon enough, he became a gifted cardiothoracic surgeon after finishing med school in North Korea.
Besides medicine, Park Hoon was also passionately in love with Song Jae-hee (Jin Se-yeon).
He tried to flee back to South Korea when his father died, with plans of bringing Jae-hee with him. Unfortunately, he lost contact with her, so he fled to South Korea alone.
Starting anew, Park Hoon worked as a doctor at a distinguished hospital. There he met Dr Hang Seun-hee, a woman who looks exactly like Jae-hee. As much as he couldn’t shake off the striking resemblance, she claims not to know Park Hoon. As he tries to get closer to her, Park Hoon also has to contend with the challenges in the hospital.
This drama was Kang So-ra’s first time to play a doctor. She plays Oh Soo Hyun, an independent and strong doctor who comes from a wealthy family. She also has a lover but one part of her heart is filled with loneliness, making her a rounded character. To prepare for the part, Kang So-ra visited a hospital and even observed a surgery, which only helped her bring a believable character to life.
Ugly Alert (2013)
This 2013 melodrama revolves around a young man named Gong Joon-soo (Im Joo-hwan). He was brought up in the school of hard knocks having to fend for himself very early on. He served time in prison after taking the blame for a murder his brother committed. However, he made good use of his time behind bars because it was there where he learned to sew. After he was discharged, he used his newly acquired skill to find a job, and this search landed him in a fashion company run by Na Do-hee (Kang So-ra). Although she inherited her position, Na Do-hee is serious about her job and tries to do it well.
This series was well received by viewers for its heart-warming plot that delivers the true meaning of “family”. It is true that even though individuals are not blood-related, people have the capacity to develop strong connections just as any other typical family would.
Dream High 2 (2012)
In this second season of Dream High, a new crop of students descend on Kirin Arts High School which is now taken over by Oz Entertainment. To circumvent a law that required underage entertainers to study for a set amount of time, the trainees from Oz were transferred to the school which brought friction between them and the troubled students at Kirin.
In this story we are introduced to Shin Hae-sung (Kang So-ra), a diehard JB fangirl who surrounds herself with the geeky crowd which consists of the class clown, the “school freak”, and the class musical genius. As a studnet, Hae-sung is a young girl who is still trying to find her niche in the world of arts.
But life becomes more interesting when the OZ talents were transferred to her school, because along with them was her precious JB. But this also opened a rivalry among the students. However, amidst all that chaos, Hae-sung caught JB’s eyes, and the two grew feelings for each other. But everything is not rainbows and butterflies for the two, especially when there are people around them who are hell-bent to break them up.
The story shows how they dealt with their personal struggles as young students, while trying to forge a future in the performing arts.
Which of these 7 dramas are you keen to watch?
