The K-Drama Awards have concluded.
This year, the expectation was a three-way battle among “Genius Copywriter Yoon Seo-eun,” “Gold Rush, Joseon,” and “The Friend of the Wind God,” and the results align with the public’s predictions.
Most of the awards were given within these three works.
To clarify, “The Friend of the Wind God” is a fusion historical drama starring Yoon Ju-won, and it was the very drama I personally regretted Yoon Ju-won having joined from the start.
Of course, as “Gold Rush, Joseon” gained traction amid controversies, the ratings ended up quite high, just as I’d anticipated.
Thanks to this, Yoon Ju-won also claimed the Excellence in Acting Award.
Regarding our side, I received the Rookie Award and Couple Award, Moon Suyeon earned the Couple Award, while Lee-on and veteran actress Kang Ji-woo, who also appeared in our production alongside Yoon Seo-eun, were bestowed with Supporting Actor Awards each.
Additionally, Director Bang, who flawlessly handled the extensive action scenes including CG, received the Directing Award.
Among the core team members, only Nam Hyun-ho left empty-handed.
He appeared unfazed, as if he’d expected this result, even though he’d jokingly expressed concern about being sidelined before the event began. It seems he had anticipated it all along.
The Scriptwriting Award, which garnered a lot of attention, went to Writer Yoo-seon, the writer of “The Friend of the Wind God.”
There was some controversy here too, but the dominant opinion was that this merely reaffirmed K-Drama Awards’ reluctance to award major prizes to rookies, which seemed to be the case again.
Yang Yuli didn’t seem to mind much either, as she hadn’t harbored hopes of winning anything.
As always, the ceremony turned out to be an event rife with disputes and controversies.
And the Grand Prize went to Heavenly Yuah.
“Technically, the Grand Prize should have gone to Siwoo, since he’s the main character in this work.”
“An award for a rookie? If I had been a solo lead, I doubt they’d have given me the Grand Prize. They scrutinize careers quite a lot in these awards.”
“Are you not disappointed?”
“Not particularly. I did receive the Rookie Award, after all. Normally, the Rookie Award is more prestigious than the Grand Prize.”
“The Rookie Award is more prestigious?”
“To you, how many times have you received the Grand Prize?”
“Let me see… Including this time, it’s about three?”
“And the Rookie Award?”
“…That’s a one-time thing.”
“Seems like the answer is clear.”
“What’s your calculation?”
Indeed, Heavenly Yuah’s statement that I would have been the better choice for the Grand Prize, if our piece had won it, held some weight. Comparing Violet and Lee Myung – Lee Myung had a more pivotal role in “Gold Rush, Joseon.” While Violet will obviously be the protagonist in “Gold Rush, America,” Lee Myung is undeniably the lead in the Joseon edition.
However, given K-Drama Awards’ typical approach, rookies seldom receive anything more than their Rookie Awards.
Especially since they don’t even give Scriptwriting Awards to rookie writers; the Grand Prize was far beyond expectations.
It’s worth considering their gesture of giving the Couple Award to me and Moon Suyeon as recognition of their own regard for our collaboration.
Receiving the Rookie Award was already a deeply meaningful experience for me, after all.
After all, taking up acting wasn’t something I’d planned to last only a few days. It’s best not to get overly happy or sad over such matters.
-The goddess of the awards ceremony, Heavenly Yuah. Timeless Pure White.
-Black & White Collaboration. Heavenly Yuah and Luna deliver a dreamy vibe.
-Mysterious Black. Luna is, as always, iconic.
Following the ceremony, the annual debate about outfits began as expected. Wearing matching white and black outfits, Heavenly Yuah and Moon Suyeon naturally captured a lot of attention, as they always do.
Admittedly, they did look beautiful. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that these two could be deemed the Best Dressed of the year. However, they were ultimately beaten by a strong contender, Jin Seo-hee.
-A daring red. Breathtaking Jin Seo-hee.
-A commanding presence. Jin Seo-hee.
Just from the headlines, one can tell that Jin Seo-hee made a striking appearance with a bold dress this time. Although Heavenly Yuah and Moon Suyeon both looked beautiful, neither of them went for a daring look. Moon Suyeon’s outfit was less revealing than her stage costumes, while Heavenly Yuah’s was completely covered up. Meanwhile, Jin Seo-hee wore a backless dress that also exposed a significant amount of her side cleavage.
Writer Min also pointed out, “Even though her outfit is daring, it doesn’t look cheap. Jin Seo-hee is likely the Best Dressed this year.”
And, as expected of a discerning writer, Writer Min’s prediction was spot on. At this year’s ceremony, Jin Seo-hee truly lived up to her reputation.
“So, was Jin Seo-hee more beautiful than me?”
“How does it look to Siwoo?”
“In my eyes, both of you were far more beautiful.”
“Then that’s all that matters.”
“Then it’s settled. Jin Seo-hee didn’t even get Siwoo’s number.”
Neither of them appeared particularly upset, and it seems actresses don’t let such things hurt their pride as much as one might think they would.
I, on the other hand, seem to be a frequent topic of discussion online. The trend was slightly different in my case, though.
-Why is this kid always between Heavenly Yuah and Luna?
-White Siu, what even are you? What were you in your past life?
-It’s already established academic consensus that White Siu was a turtle cannon in his past life.
-Damn. He’s bound to be short and he’s definitely going bald!
The debate started from my entrance on the red carpet, flanked by Heavenly Yuah to my left and Su-yeon to my right.
Or, rather than a debate, it was more of a collective envy from many men. After all, these ladies aren’t exactly averse to clinging to me, are they? In a situation like this, where everything seemed to be set up for them, why would they restrain themselves?
At the photo ops, they even went as far as linking arms around me. Due to our characters’ roles, no strange rumors were sparked, but it seemed that our display of intimacy led to many praising the camaraderie among Flame’s actors.
Most opinions, however, echoed the sentiment above, expressing sheer envy about my situation.
-White Siu’s dancing leaves much to be desired.
-Wow, he’s got squid-like moves, even though he doesn’t have the squid look.
-Ah, Hayoung’s genuine laugh. Even if you’re close, siblings are still siblings.
-I, on the other hand, thought their camaraderie was endearing. They can only laugh like that if they’re close.
Even during the celebratory stage performance by Pantaring, where I received positive reviews, the discussions around me didn’t cease. My decent appearance paired with embarrassingly clumsy dancing gave everyone quite a laugh. Some even combined my flustered GIFs with mischievous ones of another individual, saying things like “Despite their closeness, siblings are still siblings.”
But, really, do they interpret it this way?
Judging the situation as playful banter between close siblings, those people must not have any brothers or sisters themselves, surely?
-“White Siu! Is that you again?”
-And this time there was even touching! (sigh)
-“Assassination order for the small man White Siu!” “Moon Goddess fully supports the assassination of White Siu!”
-“I humbly request that Lord Divine River extends his benevolence to his followers as well.”
-Heavenly Yuah’s fans strongly advocate for the assassination of White Siu.
-Sky Descent members are also strong supporters of the White Siu assassination.
It became a hot topic when Heavenly Yuah and Moon Suyeon showcased their impressive dance moves with me in the middle. Their moves included a lot of physical contact and were subtly provocative, to say the least. From the moment I stepped onto the stage, I seemed to be pegged as the number one assassination target. I can’t help but wonder if this will lead to some drastic actions from these people.
On the fan club side, it seems that while Heavenly Yuah’s supporters largely demand more fan service from her, Moon Suyeon’s camp appears genuine in their sentiments, making my skin crawl.
But the issue wasn’t just the dancing.
In the special stage where Moon Suyeon and I displayed an impeccable chemistry, the discussions surrounding us intensified. Our joint choreography received acclaim as a GOAT-level performance for special award stage acts. Even fandom circles that belittle my stature couldn’t deny the magnificence of that stage. As a result, there were no complaints towards my spontaneous actions. The organizers also seemed to have anticipated leveraging the opportunity.
However, a significant number of people began to suspect a blossoming romance between Moon Suyeon and me, given the intense chemistry we displayed.
“Is this alright?”
“About what?”
“It feels like we’re heading towards a scandal. If it’s revealed that Suyeon senior and I live in the same company, it will certainly explode.”
“Does it really matter?”
“No, why shouldn’t it?”
“Eventually, it’ll come out anyway. Better that it happens now when we’re less active.”
“What?”
The main issue is that this woman doesn’t seem remotely bothered by scandals. For goodness’ sake, is she living recklessly or what?
“Still, it’s a bit much with these scandals. The community discussions and media should be more controlled. Besides, the information about me and Suyeon living in the company will never be disclosed. That’s not what I want.”
It’s fortunate that Heavenly Yuah is actively intervening here. At least she still retains some semblance of discretion in this matter.
“Scandal? If it happens, it happens. I’ll be the one first, you know.”
“Hmph~ I’ve already got the Couple Award, so if any scandal breaks, it will be me who does first, anyway.”
“Do you think I’ll just sit idly by while you do that?”
“Hmm… Whatever~”
Judging from their intense whispering, they seem to be discussing ways to quell any potential scandals. Even though Moon Suyeon says the things she does, she’s not completely thoughtless, given her promising future ahead. After all, she’s still broke, and without a place to go if she leaves the company, it’s unlikely she’d jeopardize her career with reckless actions.
*
The ruckus over the award ceremony lasted only a few days before new issues shook the entertainment industry as the new year approached.
A rather serious and somber piece of news hit the industry. It was revealed that a few famous celebrities were involved in drug use, and among them was Jo Yoo-shin. His state during the award ceremony seemed off, but it turns out he was up to no good behind the scenes.
“Wow, that was a close call. Jo Yoo-shin, though I didn’t really notice him until now…”
As Jo Yoo-shin emerged as a key figure in this drug scandal, Nam Hyun-ho narrowly avoided trouble. All the actors who were close to Jo Yoo-shin were being investigated for drug use. With Nam Hyun-ho cutting ties with Jo Yoo-shin more than half a year ago and severing all contact since then, he avoided becoming a subject of investigation. Of course, even if he had been investigated, it would’ve been hard to find any evidence against him, but being a subject of investigation alone can damage an entertainer’s career. In this light, Nam Hyun-ho had excellent timing meeting me. If he had severed ties any later, he might have faced some trouble.
“However, I didn’t expect it to turn out this way…”
In fact, until the drug scandal broke, there wasn’t too much on my mind. These kinds of drug scandals involving celebrities aren’t exactly rare. The only notable thing this time was the response from Pentaring fans. They, who had previously proclaimed “Pentaring can do anything they want,” humorously corrected their stance, now saying, “Pentaring can do anything except drugs!” The tragedy arose due to Jo Yoo-shin’s use of a pentanyl-related drug.
Of course, it was all a joke to lighten the mood.
These seemingly unrelated drug scandals began to impact me as well when it was revealed that the unfolding events closely mirrored the progress of the KTD show. With scandals in the entertainment world expanding their reach to political and economic sectors, there were significant parallels between the storylines of the drama and the flow of real events.
-Did KTD’s Han Sang-jo predict the Jo Yoo-shin drug scandal?!
This signaled a new direction for the three-way battle in the second half of the drama.
