Bae In-hyuk plays Prince Lee Eun in ‘Check-In Hanyang.’
Yongcheonru stands across from the royal palace in the historical k-drama Check-In Hanyang. The fictional inn is not quite as grand as the palace, but it’s the grandest inn in Hanyang, capital of Joseon, the Korean kingdom that existed from 1392 to 1897. At Yongcheonru, the customer is the king. Anyone who has enough money to spend can be treated like royalty there—down to wearing royal robes and play-acting the part.
It’s such a desirable place to work that people fight for the chance. Applicants need a special invitation to take the employment exam. However, two of the drama’s characters find a way to circumvent the rules and start working there. They both have complicated reasons. Prince Lee Eun, played by Bae In-hyuk, asks the king for permission to apprentice there because he wants to learn what it’s like to be a merchant. What he really wants is to solve a mystery connected with the inn and to protect the royal family.
Jung Gun-joo plays the heir to the famous Hanyang inn.
The other desperate applicant is Hong Deok-su, played by Kim Ji-eun. Deok-su began dressing in male clothes to hide from her father’s killers, but her disguise also makes it easier to get a job at the inn. She claims her goal is to one day become the master innkeeper at Yongcheonru. Deok-su also has a mystery to solve, a mystery that’s connected to the inn and the innkeeper, played by Kim Min-jung. The prince quickly suspects that Deok-su holds a key to the answers he seeks. It might take a while to convince her to help him.
Bae was asked about the drama during a recent interview.
“The background is in the Joseon period, a long time ago,” he said. “But the drama style is very trendy and I’m working with amazing actors that are worth watching. It’s really trendy and fun. You won’t regret watching it.”
The actor previously played a Joseon-era prince in the 2022 drama Under The Queen’s Umbrella. He’s also known for his roles in the dramas The Story of Park’s Marriage Contract, Why Her?, At A Distance Spring Is Green and My Roommate Is A Gumiho. Kim Ji-eun can be seen in the dramas Love Next Door, Branding In Seongsu and One Dollar Lawyer.
Jung Gun-joo (The Secret Romantic Guest House, Bitter Sweet Hell, Monthly Magazine Home and Oh My Baby) plays Cheon Jun-hwa, a fellow apprentice who happens to be the heir to Yongcheonru. The prince and Deok-su also befriend the brash apprentice Go Soo-ra, played by singer, actor, and songwriter Park Jae-chan. Jaechan is a member of the k-pop group DKZ and appeared in the BL drama Semantic Error.
Together these apprentices will have to learn the ropes while trying to untangle the inn’s secrets. Check-in Hanyang is written by Park Hyun-jin and directed by Myeong Hyun-woo. The Channel A k-drama airs on Viki.com in the U.S.
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