Cats on the Roof

Cats on the Roof[1] (Korean: 옥탑방 고양이; RR: Oktapbang Goyang-i; lit. Rooftop Room Cat) is a 2003 South Korean television series starring Kim Rae-won, Jeong Da-bin, Choi Jung-yoon and Lee Hyun-woo.[2] It aired on MBC from June 2 to July 22, 2003 on Mondays and Tuesdays at 21:55 for 16 episodes.

Cats on the Roof
Promotional poster
Also known as
  • Attic Cat
  • Cat on the Roof
  • Cat in the Rooftop Flat
  • Rooftop Romance
Written by
  • Min Hyo-jung
  • Goo Sun-kyung
Story byKim Yu-ri
Directed byKim Sa-hyun
Starring
Country of originSouth Korea
Original languageKorean
No. of episodes16
Production
Running time50 minutes
Release
Original networkMunhwa Broadcasting Corporation
Original releaseJune 2 (2003-06-02) –
July 22, 2003 (2003-07-22)
Cats on the Roof
Hangul
Hanja
屋塔房 고양이
Revised RomanizationOktapbang Goyangi
McCune–ReischauerOkt'appang Koyangyi

A comedy with light touches of drama about friendship, love and cohabitation, the series is loosely based on an internet novel written by Kim Yu-ri.[3][4] It was a hit, receiving an average viewership rating of 26.3% and a peak rating of 37.3%.

Overview

Kyung-min, a law student, is in desperate straits, so he decides to take it upon himself to help Hye-ryun's poor friend, Jung-eun. This is the beginning of an extremely volatile friendship that somehow ends with the two of them living together under one roof, or to be more specific, living in a room on top of the roof of an old building.

This romantic setting provides the backdrop for this unlikely love story. Kyung-min's bratty ways clashes with Jung-eun's simple living, as he steadily takes advantage of her kindness and good nature.

Synopsis

Kyung-min is an orphan who was raised by his grandparents. His parents died many years ago in an accident. Both his grandparents love him very much. His grandmother especially so and accords to everything he does. As a result, he is spoiled and immature. He is a law student and lives in his own apartment funded by his rich grandparents money. Kyung-min likes a girl called Hye-ryun who is also rich and studying law with him. Hye-ryun pays Kyung-min no attention.

Jung-eun comes from a humble background. Her father is a policeman and her mother a housewife. Jung-eun is self-proclaimed to be not very bright and has failed the employment examination repeatedly. As a result, it is difficult for her to find a job. However, she remains optimistic about her future.

One day, Jung-eun's family decides to move to another town, away from Seoul. Jung eun is shocked and disapproves of the idea, however, under the patriarchal society of Korea, she has no choice. She secretly rents an attic room in an old building, however, before she can pay the deposit her immature younger brother finds her bank account booklet and steals the hard-earned money she has earned from her daily paper deliveries. Jung-eun is outraged and worries that her desire to remain in Seoul is shattered.

Jung-eun and Hye-ryun are friends from high school. One day Jung-eun borrowed Hye-ryun's library card and used the university's library's facilities. She accidentally takes Kyung-min's seat and drools over his books while she slept, tired from studying. Kyung-min returns to his seat disgusted at her actions. Jung-eun apologises and leaves. Later, Kyung-min's friend accidentally takes his folder without informing Kyung-min. Kyung-min, believing that Jung-eun stole his folder, goes and chases Jung-eun down and demands she open her bag. Jung-eun defends herself by stating that she did not steal his folder. Their verbal disagreement turns in physical as Kyung-min grabs her bag and the contents are spilt out. Kyung-min realises his mistake and quickly gathers the things back in her bag. Jung-eun walks off in a huff.

Soon, Jung-eun returns Hye-ryun's card and they have lunch in the cafeteria. As they chat, this was incidentally seen by Kyung-min. Kyung-min forms an idea. A few days later, he sees Jung-eun in the University park and decides to befriend her in order for Jung-eun to whisper favorable words to Hye-ryun. Kyung-min deceptively slips that he is Hye-ryun's friends. Knowing this, Jung-eun reasons that since he is Hye-ryun's friend, then he can't be too harmful. Due to Kyung-min's regretful attitude, Jung-eun decides to trust Kyung-min and they become friends. As they get to know each other, Jung-eun pours out her finance woes to Kyung-min due to her brother's theft and the resulting inability to pay the deposit for the attic house. Kyung-min, keen to be nice to Jung-eun, lends his money to Jung-eun.

Cast

Theatre adaptation

It was adapted into a stage play of the same title in 2010, with Lee Sun-ho and Hwang Bo-ra in the leading roles.[5]

References
  1. "Cats on the Roof". MBC Global Media. MBC&iMBC. Archived from the original on September 12, 2018. Retrieved September 12, 2018.
  2. "Lee Hyun-woo Stars in TV Drama". KBS World. May 22, 2003. Archived from the original on July 17, 2014. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
  3. Chun, Su-jin (July 1, 2003). "Prince Charming moves in, brings laundry". Korea JoongAng Daily. Archived from the original on December 17, 2014. Retrieved July 12, 2013.
  4. Lim, Kit. "Attic Cat (2003, MBC miniseries)". Koreanfilm.org. Archived from the original on October 27, 2012. Retrieved July 11, 2013.
  5. Chung, Ah-young (March 14, 2010). "Popular Drama Goes on Stage". The Korea Times. Archived from the original on June 9, 2012. Retrieved July 11, 2013.
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