Classic Kdrama 101: Princess Hours

In our new series, Classic Kdramas 101, we recommend dramas you may have missed and one that deserves the royal treatment is the series, "Princess Hours."

This drama is a retelling of the Princess Diana story-commoner finds that living among royalty is not all you might imagine-but with a satisfying kdrama ending. The drama also wonders what it would be like if Korea still had a royal family, which it doesn't, and how such a family might cope with a scandal.

In this alternate royal reality, the nation's king is sick so it becomes a priority for Crown Prince Lee Shin, played by Ju Ji Hoon, to find a bride. The girl he wants to marry refuses his offer, but that's just as well since apparently his grandfather, the late king, made an arrangement with a lifelong friend that their grandchildren should marry.

Who should that grandchild turn out to be but Chae Kyeong, played by Yoon Eun Hye. She attends the same art school as the prince and they have already had a run in. Her family is close but poor and they are on the verge of bankruptcy. So, when they are contacted about a royal marriage, her parents consider it a blessing. While the idea of marrying someone she does not love is not appealing to Chae Kyeong, she agrees to be wed to save her family.

Like Princess Diana, the exuberant Chae Kyeong provides a breath of fresh air in the palace, easily winning over the royal family and the nation's people with her charm. The only person she cannot win over is the cold distant prince. She has better luck with his cousin, Yul, played by Kim Jeong Hoon. Yul was once heir to the throne and would have been the prince pledged to marry Chae Kyeong if he not lost his place in the royal succession.

While this drama is a little long, because it was so popular that episodes were added, you cannot help but cheer for Chae Kyeong as she valiantly copes with her less stifling surroundings.

This series also has two of my favorite Kdrama supporting actors: Kim Hye Ja as the Queen Mother and princes' grandmother and Kang Nam Gil as Chae Kyeong's overly enthusiastic father.

This sweet and charming drama manages to deliver a few important messages: all that glitters is not gold, money and power cannot buy you happiness and you have to be true to yourself. And the sets and costumes are gorgeous.

Have you seen it yet? What do you think?