Jung In-sun’s two candidates for her DNA Lover

by solstices

Sparks are flying in the latest teaser for TV Chosun’s upcoming rom-com DNA Lover, as our leading lady finds herself drawn to two equally swoony men. Just which one is her ideal partner, and will she be able to determine the correct answer?

“My DNA lover, who’s designed to love me,” our heroine Jung In-sun (Grand Shining Hotel) muses wistfully. As the gene researcher Han So-jin, her professional expertise and her idealistic dreams intersect in a peculiar core belief — that there exists a perfect, destined romantic match to her DNA.

But who could that possibly be? There’s Choi Siwon (Death’s Game) as the OB-GYN Shim Yeon-woo, who gently affixes a hairpin to So-jin’s unruly curls. Then there’s the young firefighter Seo Kang-hoon — played by Lee Tae-hwan (Thirty-Nine) — who gets his adorable cheeks squished between So-jin’s palms. (Cue a tiny hiccup from the startled Kang-hoon, hee.)

It doesn’t take long for our two candidates to recognize that they’re in the midst of a love triangle, and they wind up glaring at each other over a camping site. While reaching out to feed So-jin a slice of meat, Yeon-woo cuts straight to the chase: “Kang-hoon, you like So-jin, right?” In response, Kang-hoon eats the food straight off Yeon-woo’s chopsticks. Ha, So-jin and Yeon-woo’s looks of incredulous disbelief are absolutely priceless.

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Seemingly orchestrated by fate, Yeon-woo just so happens to be there when So-jin needs him, helping her up after she falls on a twisted ankle. But if you thought it’d lead straight to swoony butterflies, think again, because here’s where the comedy comes in. Not only does So-jin unabashedly lean across Yeon-woo’s office desk, but she also astonishes him with a loud yelp right in his face. Not your typical heroine, this one.

As for Kang-hoon, he’s taking this rivalry very seriously. “So-jin noona will end up with a good man,” Kang-hoon declares to Yeon-woo. “I’ll make sure she doesn’t date you, hyung!” Perhaps a little misguided, but his puppy-like devotion is quite endearing — Kang-hoon’s so smitten he can’t stop daydreaming about his pretty noona ~~who buys him food~~.

Refusing to admit defeat, Yeon-woo begins his courtship efforts anew, showing up at her classroom door with a bouquet of fresh flowers. “It’s as if he’s suddenly acting like a different person,” a bewildered So-jin comments, “making me flustered and all.” To further complicate matters, Jung Yoo-jin (Celebrity) enters the picture as the polyamory columnist Jang Mi-eun, who seems to still harbor feelings for her ex Yeon-woo. With both our leads torn between two choices, will their DNA connection win out? (Or maybe Mi-eun could convince them all into a best-of-both-worlds polycule? Hey, a girl can dream.)

Directed by PD Sung Chi-wook (Tomorrow) with scripts written by Jung Su-mi (Born Again), DNA Lover premieres next month on August 17.