| Creator: | Kim Eun-sook Shin Woo-chul |
| Based On: | Turn Around and Leave by Lee Man-hee |
| Director: | Shin Woo-chul |
| Producer: | Gu Bon-geun |
| Starring: | Kim Jung-eun Lee Seo-jin |
| Music: | Park Se-jun |
| Location: | South Korea Hainan Island, China |
| Country: | South Korea |
| Network: | SBS TV |
| Num Episodes: | 20 |
Lovers is a South Korean television series starring Kim Jung-eun and Lee Seo-jin who play a plastic surgeon and a gangster who enter into an unlikely romance.[1] [2] [3] The series is based on the Lee Man-hee stage play Turn Around and Leave, the same work that inspired the 1998 blockbuster film starring Jeon Do-yeon and Park Shin-yang.[4] It aired on SBS from November 8, 2006 to January 11, 2007 on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 21:55 for 20 episodes.
It is the third and final installment of the "Lovers" trilogy by writer Kim Eun-sook and director Shin Woo-chul. Unlike previous installments Lovers in Paris (which Kim also starred in) and Lovers in Prague which were partly shot in Europe, Lovers filmed on location in China's Hainan Island.
Yoon Mi-ju (Kim Jung-eun) is the daughter of a reverend, who has adopted many children and set up an orphanage, and works as a plastic surgeon in a hospital, although her dream is to open a clinic of her own. Ha Kang-jae (Lee Seo-jin) is an orphan raised by Kang Choong-shik, a gangland boss, and his trusty right hand. The two meet when Mi-ju mistakes Kang-jae for her adoptive sister's former boyfriend, who dumped her after discovering she was pregnant; as Mi-ju learns a little later, Kang-jae is actually in a relationship with Park Yu-jin (Kim Gyu-ri), Mi-ju's neighbor. Kang-jae is also the potential buyer for the land that houses Reverend Yoon's orphanage, and that Mi-ju wants to sell, not knowing that the land and the house are at risk for seizure because of his father. When Kang-jae is wounded by some Chinese gangsters, Mi-ju treats him and he begins to fall for her; meanwhile, Kang Se-yeon (Jung Chan), son of the boss Kang-jae works for, falls in love with Mi-ju, who his mother wants as a daughter in law because she considers her a good catch.
34 years old, orphan, gangster, right hand of gang boss Kang Choong-shik who raised him
31 years old, reverend's daughter, plastic surgeon, supports her father and his orphanage
33 years old, Kang Choong-shik's son, MBA educated, who returns to Korea after years spent abroad
28 years old, owner of bakery, Kang-jae's girlfirend, Seo-yeon's first love
In the table below,
the blue numbers represent the lowest ratings and the red numbers represent the highest ratings.| width=100 | Date | width=100 | Episode | width=100 | Nationwide | width=100 | Seoul |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006-11-08 | 1 | 11.3% | 12.1% | ||||
| 2006-11-09 | 2 | 12.2% | 12.8% | ||||
| 2006-11-15 | 3 | 14.3% | 14.8% | ||||
| 2006-11-16 | 4 | 15.6% | 15.9% | ||||
| 2006-11-22 | 5 | 14.7% | 15.5% | ||||
| 2006-11-23 | 6 | 15.6% | 15.6% | ||||
| 2006-11-29 | 7 | 16.1% | 16.4% | ||||
| 2006-11-30 | 8 | 16.0% | 16.2% | ||||
| 2006-12-06 | 9 | 16.2% | 16.7% | ||||
| 2006-12-07 | 10 | 15.8% | 15.9% | ||||
| 2006-12-13 | 11 | 16.3% | 16.3% | ||||
| 2006-12-14 | 12 | 19.5% | 20.3% | ||||
| 2006-12-20 | 13 | 17.0% | 17.4% | ||||
| 2006-12-21 | 14 | 18.0% | 19.0% | ||||
| 2006-12-27 | 15 | 18.3% | 19.4% | ||||
| 2006-12-28 | 16 | 16.6% | 17.5% | ||||
| 2007-01-03 | 17 | 21.0% | 22.2% | ||||
| 2007-01-04 | 18 | 23.2% | 23.9% | ||||
| 2007-01-10 | 19 | 20.8% | 21.8% | ||||
| 2007-01-11 | 20 | 25.3% | 26.8% | ||||
| Average | 17.2% | 17.8% | |||||