South Korea · Drama · 2004
Full House
Binge Brief
- A 16-episode KBS2 romantic comedy that aired on Wednesdays and Thursdays in the summer of 2004.
- Rain and Song Hye Kyo play an actor and a writer in a contract marriage, with the house she lost as her payment.
- The finale reached 40.2 percent on TNS Media Korea, almost double the 21.0 percent of episode 1.
- Seven stars, among them Choi Ji Woo and Song Yoon Ah, make cameos as wedding guests in episode 3.
- The beach house was a set built for the drama on Sido island, Incheon, and it was demolished in the summer of 2013.
Synopsis
Han Ji Eun lives alone in Full House, the seaside house her late father built, and writes internet novels under a pen name. Her two oldest friends, Dong Wook and Hee Jin, give her a ticket to Shanghai. While she is away they empty her bank account, take out a card loan in her name and sell the house. On the flight she meets Lee Young Jae, a famous actor, and neither of them knows yet that he is the buyer.
Ji Eun comes home broke and talks her way into working as his housekeeper. When a press scandal catches up with Young Jae, he offers her a contract marriage, with the house as her settlement. He has his own reason: Kang Hye Won, a fashion designer he has loved since childhood, might finally notice him if he marries someone else. Hye Won wants Yoo Min Hyuk, Young Jae's rich friend, and Min Hyuk becomes interested in Ji Eun.
So the Full House Korean drama becomes a love square in which the fake couple is the one pairing nobody planned, and they cannot share a kitchen without a fight. Young Jae's father, a doctor from a family of doctors, starts to like his new daughter-in-law, which makes the fake marriage harder to end on schedule.
KBS2 aired the 16 episodes from 14 July to 2 September 2004. The script came from Won Soo-yeon's manhwa, but moved the comic's foreign hero and setting to Korea. For Rain, then known as a dance-pop singer, it was the role that made him a lead actor.
Why it still gets watched
The setup is the part other people copied. A contract marriage, one house, a landlord and a housekeeper who end up as husband and wife on paper: KBS2 aired all of it in 2004, and other countries later made their own versions, listed further down this page.
What still holds up is Song Hye Kyo. Four years after playing the fragile heroine of Autumn in My Heart, she plays Ji Eun as stubborn, loud and very good at getting her own way with almost no money. Rain's Young Jae is rude in ways the show does not apologise for, and the drama is funnier because of it.
Some of it has aged. Ji Eun forgives the friends who stole everything she owned far too easily. The house, which people used to travel to see, no longer exists.
Full House cast
Best scenes
Spoilers aheadThe moments people come back for, and where to find them. Episode numbers and outcomes are named, so come back to this one after watching if you would rather not know.
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Strangers on the same flight Episode 1
Ji Eun and Young Jae meet on the plane before either knows he has bought her house. KBS Drama Classic uses it as the episode 1 highlight.
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The marriage offer Episode 3
With a scandal breaking, Young Jae proposes a contract marriage and puts Full House on the table as her settlement.
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Ji Eun asks for a divorce Episode 11
Young Jae agrees to be with Hye Won, and Ji Eun answers by asking to end the marriage.
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The last proposal Episode 16
Ji Eun turns Young Jae down, and he has to work to change her mind. KBS Drama Classic titles the clip with the line "I love you so much, I'll listen to you from now on."
Filming locations
The Full House set, Sido island, Incheon. The house was built for the drama on Sugi beach on Sido, about ten minutes by boat from Sammok harbour, with Modo island joined to it by a bridge. It was mostly wood and reportedly cost around US$1 million. It drew fans for years after the broadcast, then fell into disrepair and was demolished in the summer of 2013.
Shanghai and Thailand. Both are listed among the production locations alongside Incheon. Ji Eun's trip at the start of the story is to Shanghai.
Themes and messages
Losing a home. The story starts with a house sold behind its owner's back, and the contract that follows is Ji Eun's way of getting it back.
Friends who fail you. Dong Wook and Hee Jin take everything she has, yet the drama keeps them in her life and even lets them help bring the couple back together.
Fame against privacy. The marriage exists to handle a scandal, and a story in the press is what sets the contract in motion.
Interesting facts
Young Jae was first offered to Jung Woo Sung and then to Lee Jung Jae, who turned it down while preparing the film Typhoon. Rain was cast after that.
Jun Ji Hyun was lined up for Ji Eun before Song Hye Kyo, and passed on the role.
In the manhwa the hero is Rider Bay, a white Englishman, and the heroine is Ellie G. The drama made both Korean.
Young Jae sings the children's song Three Bears (곰 세 마리) in the drama, and the leads' version made the song popular again.
Lee Bo Ram recorded "처음 그 자리에" for the soundtrack while she was still in high school, before her debut with the group SeeYa.
Remakes and other versions
Full House (Philippines, 2009). A 65-episode Filipino version.
Full House Take 2 (2012). Aired on SBS Plus with a different story and cast (Hwang Jung Eum, No Min Woo, Park Ki Woong), set in a shared house of the same name. It is not a continuation.
Full House (Thailand, 2014). A 20-episode Thai version.
Full House, the musical (2014). Staged at the Hongik Art Center from 11 April 2014, with Yang Yo Seob and Leo alternating as Young Jae and Jung Eun Ji and Joo alternating as Ji Eun.
To Get Her (Taiwan, 2009). Borrowed the Full House setup without being a remake.
Episodes
| Ep | Title | Air date | Status | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Writer Han Ji Eun and actor Lee Young Jae meet on the same flight, on a trip her friends set up so they could rob her. | 2004-07-14 | Aired | 21.0% |
| 2 | Young Jae, the new owner, learns how Ji Eun lost the house and takes her on as his housekeeper. | 2004-07-15 | Aired | 22.2% |
| 3 | A scandal pushes Young Jae to propose a contract marriage, with Full House as her payment. | 2004-07-21 | Aired | 26.6% |
| 4 | Back from the honeymoon, Ji Eun gets a call from a publisher who turns down her novel. | 2004-07-22 | Aired | 29.1% |
| 5 | Young Jae's family leans on Ji Eun, and he fails to turn up when he promised he would. | 2004-07-28 | Aired | 29.9% |
| 6 | Hye Won ends up in hospital, and Ji Eun is jealous of Young Jae's visits. | 2004-07-29 | Aired | 31.7% |
| 7 | Young Jae tells Hye Won he will not be the one to let go of her hand. | 2004-08-04 | Aired | 31.6% |
| 8 | Young Jae stops seeing Hye Won, and Min Hyuk tells Ji Eun how he feels about her. | 2004-08-05 | Aired | 33.0% |
| 9 | Min Hyuk asks Ji Eun for a chance, and she tells Young Jae about the confession. | 2004-08-11 | Aired | 34.0% |
| 10 | Young Jae apologises to Ji Eun for always keeping her waiting. | 2004-08-12 | Aired | 36.3% |
| 11 | Young Jae agrees to be with Hye Won, and Ji Eun asks for a divorce. | 2004-08-18 | Aired | 32.6% |
| 12 | Ji Eun takes back her divorce request. | 2004-08-19 | Aired | 38.4% |
| 13 | Young Jae tells Ji Eun he will move out to be with Hye Won. | 2004-08-25 | Aired | 35.1% |
| 14 | Ji Eun tries to talk to Young Jae about where the two of them stand. | 2004-08-26 | Aired | 34.8% |
| 15 | Young Jae retreats to a monastery. | 2004-09-01 | Aired | 37.5% |
| 16 | Ji Eun turns down Young Jae's proposal, and he goes to great lengths to change her mind. | 2004-09-02 | Aired | 40.2% |
Soundtrack
Starting the player loads Spotify, which sets its own cookies.
| Track | Artist |
|---|---|
| Destiny (운명) | WHY |
| Forever | WHY |
| Cheoeum Geu Jarie (처음 그 자리에) | Lee Bo Ram |
Awards
| Year | Ceremony | Category | Recipient | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | KBS Drama Awards | Top Excellence Award, Actress | Song Hye Kyo | Won |
| 2004 | KBS Drama Awards | Excellence Award, Actor | Rain | Won |
| 2004 | KBS Drama Awards | Best Couple Award | Rain and Song Hye Kyo | Won |
| 2005 | 41st Baeksang Arts Awards | Best Actress (TV) | Song Hye Kyo | Nominated |
Frequently asked questions
How many episodes does the Full House Korean drama have?
Sixteen episodes of about 70 minutes. KBS2 aired them on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 14 July to 2 September 2004.
Who is in the cast of Full House?
Rain plays actor Lee Young Jae and Song Hye Kyo plays writer Han Ji Eun. Kim Sung Soo is Yoo Min Hyuk and Han Eun Jung, now known as Han Da Gam, is Kang Hye Won. Choi Ji Woo, Song Yoon Ah, Kim Min Joon, Lee Jae Ryong, Yoo Ho Jung, Kim Seung Woo and Shin Ae Ra appear as wedding guests in episode 3.
Is there a Full House season 2?
No. Full House Take 2 (2012) borrowed the name for a new story with a new cast on SBS Plus. The 2004 drama ends at episode 16.
Who sings the Full House OST?
The theme, Destiny (운명), and Forever are sung by WHY. The ballad 처음 그 자리에 is sung by Lee Bo Ram.
How well did Full House rate in Korea?
On TNS Media Korea it opened at 21.0 percent and finished at 40.2 percent on 2 September 2004, an average of 32.1 percent. Nielsen's average for the run was lower, at 29.3 percent.
Where can I watch Full House with English subtitles?
In the United States it streams on Kocowa and OnDemandKorea as of September 2026. Rights change by country and year, so check the platforms listed on this page. Discover Asian World links out to those licensed services and keeps no episode of Full House on its own servers.
Is the Full House Korean drama worth watching, based on reviews?
Contemporary reviews were strong on the numbers: Full House peaked at 40.2 percent on TNS Media Korea, and it won three prizes at the 2004 KBS Drama Awards, the Top Excellence Award for Song Hye Kyo, the Excellence Award for Rain, and Best Couple for the pair, plus a Best Actress nomination for Song Hye Kyo at the 41st Baeksang Arts Awards the following year.
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