| The Merchant: Gaekju 2015 | |
|---|---|
![]() Promotional poster  | |
| Also known as | The God of Trade: Gaekju 2015, The God of Commerce: Gaekju 2015, Master of Trade: The Inn 2015 | 
| Genre | Historical | 
| Based on | Gaekju by Kim Joo-young  | 
| Written by | Jung Sung-hee  Lee Han-ho  | 
| Directed by | Kim Jong-sun | 
| Starring | Jang Hyuk  Yu Oh-seong Kim Min-jung Han Chae-ah Park Eun-hye Lee Deok-hwa  | 
| Country of origin | South Korea | 
| Original language | Korean | 
| No. of episodes | 41 | 
| Production | |
| Production company | S.M. Culture & Contents | 
| Original release | |
| Network | Korean Broadcasting System | 
| Release | September 23, 2015 – February 18, 2016  | 
The Merchant: Gaekju 2015 (Korean: 장사의 신 – 객주 2015; RR: Jangsaui sin – Gaekju 2015; lit. "Master of Trade: The Innkeeper Merchant 2015")[1] is a South Korean television series based on Gaekju, Kim Joo-young's ten-volume novel which was serialized in daily newspaper Seoul Shinmun from June 1979 to February 1983.[2][3] It aired on KBS2 on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 21:55 for 41 episodes beginning September 23, 2015.[4][5]
Plot
In late Joseon, a poor man named Chun Bong-sam inherits a decrepit inn and honestly works his way up to becoming a powerful merchant. As tradesmen clash against the bureaucratic powers that attempt to oppress them by rigging bad deals, Bong-sam never loses sight of his humble beginnings as a peddler even after achieving great success and eventually shapes the way that industry and business are done in his time.
Cast
- Jang Hyuk as Chun Bong-sam
- Jo Hyun-do as young Bong-sam
 
 - Yu Oh-seong as Gil So-gae
- Park Gun-tae as young So-gae
 
 - Kim Min-jung as Mae-wol
 - Han Chae-ah as Jo So-sa
 - Park Eun-hye as Chun So-rye
- Seo Ji-hee as young So-rye
 
 - Lee Deok-hwa as Shin Seok-ju
 - Kim Il-woo as Maeng Gu-beom
 - Kim Kyu-chul as Kim Bo-hyun
 - Kim Hak-chul as Kim Hak-joon
 - Jung Tae-woo as Sun-dol
 - Ryu Dam as Gom-bae
 - Yang Jung-a as Bang-geum
 - Song Young-jae as Mung-gae
 - Moon Ga-young as Wol-yi
 - Choi Seung-hoon
 
Original soundtracks
| No. | Title | Artist | Length | 
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "그대만 살아서 (Only You)" | Luna (f(x)) | 4:50 | 
| 2. | "단 한 사람 (Because of You)" | Taeil (SM Rookies) | 3:48 | 
Ratings
In the table below, the blue numbers represent the lowest ratings and the red numbers represent the highest ratings.
| Episode # | Original broadcast date | Average audience share | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TNmS Ratings[6] | AGB Nielsen[7] | ||||
| Nationwide | Seoul National Capital Area | Nationwide | Seoul National Capital Area | ||
| 1 | September 23, 2015 | 5.2% | (<6.7%) | 6.9% | 7.3% | 
| 2 | September 24, 2015 | 4.5% | (<7.2%) | 5.9% | 5.8% | 
| 3 | September 30, 2015 | 4.1% | 4.0% | 6.0% | 5.8% | 
| 4 | October 1, 2015 | 4.3% | (<7.8%) | 6.7% | 6.7% | 
| 5 | October 7, 2015 | 6.9% | 7.2% | 7.8% | 8.2% | 
| 6 | October 8, 2015 | 7.4% | 7.7% | 9.5% | 10.0% | 
| 7 | October 14, 2015 | 8.7% | 9.1% | 11.1% | 11.5% | 
| 8 | October 15, 2015 | 8.4% | 9.2% | 10.0% | 9.8% | 
| 9 | October 21, 2015 | 8.1% | 9.1% | 9.9% | 10.5% | 
| 10 | October 22, 2015 | 8.0% | 8.5% | 10.9% | 11.2% | 
| 11 | October 28, 2015 | 8.2% | 8.5% | 10.1% | 9.9% | 
| 12 | November 4, 2015 | 7.7% | 8.2% | 11.1% | 11.3% | 
| 13 | November 5, 2015 | 7.8% | 8.3% | 10.2% | 10.2% | 
| 14 | November 11, 2015 | 7.9% | 8.7% | 11.3% | 11.7% | 
| 15 | November 12, 2015 | 9.5% | 10.2% | 12.1% | 11.6% | 
| 16 | November 18, 2015 | 8.4% | — | 12.0% | 11.9% | 
| 17 | November 19, 2015 | 8.0% | 8.9% | 11.7% | 11.6% | 
| 18 | November 25, 2015 | 8.6% | 8.9% | 12.2% | 12.2% | 
| 19 | November 26, 2015 | 9.2% | 9.6% | 13.0% | 12.8% | 
| 20 | December 2, 2015 | 8.1% | 8.7% | 12.4% | 12.6% | 
| 21 | December 3, 2015 | 9.7% | 10.6% | 12.2% | 12.3% | 
| 22 | December 9, 2015 | 8.4% | 9.2% | 11.6% | 11.8% | 
| 23 | December 10, 2015 | 8.5% | 9.4% | 11.4% | 11.6% | 
| 24 | December 16, 2015 | 8.4% | 8.7% | 10.6% | 10.1% | 
| 25 | December 17, 2015 | 7.4% | 7.6% | 11.6% | 10.9% | 
| 26 | December 23, 2015 | 7.7% | 8.2% | 11.7% | 11.0% | 
| 27 | December 24, 2015 | 7.6% | 8.0% | 11.0% | 11.1% | 
| 2016 | |||||
| 28 | January 6, 2016 | 7.7% | 8.5% | 9.8% | 9.7% | 
| 29 | January 7, 2016 | 8.8% | 9.6% | 11.4% | 11.6% | 
| 30 | January 13, 2016 | 8.0% | 8.5% | 10.7% | 10.4% | 
| 31 | January 14, 2016 | 9.2% | 9.5% | 11.4% | 11.5% | 
| 32 | January 20, 2016 | 8.4% | 8.1% | 10.8% | 10.2% | 
| 33 | January 21, 2016 | 9.8% | 9.3% | 11.5% | 11.0% | 
| 34 | January 27, 2016 | 9.1% | 9.1% | 10.2% | 9.9% | 
| 35 | January 28, 2016 | 9.9% | 9.6% | 11.8% | 11.0% | 
| 36 | February 3, 2016 | 9.1% | 9.0% | 11.2% | 11.1% | 
| 37 | February 4, 2016 | 9.9% | 10.1% | 11.4% | 10.6% | 
| 38 | February 10, 2016 | 8.7% | 8.9% | 10.4% | % | 
| 39 | February 11, 2016 | 8.4% | 8.5% | 11.1% | 10.4% | 
| 40 | February 17, 2016 | 8.5% | 8.5% | 10.4% | 9.7% | 
| 41 | February 18, 2016 | 8.8% | 9.4% | 11.2% | 10.9% | 
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Recipient | Result | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 4th APAN Star Awards | Top Excellence Award, Actor in a Serial Drama | Jang Hyuk | Nominated | 
| Excellence Award, Actress in a Serial Drama | Kim Min-jung | Won | ||
| Han Chae-ah | Nominated | |||
| 29th KBS Drama Awards | Excellence Award, Actor in a Mid-length Drama | Jang Hyuk | Won | |
| Excellence Award, Actress in a Mid-length Drama | Kim Min-jung | Won | ||
| Han Chae-ah | Nominated | |||
| Best Couple Award | Jang Hyuk and Han Chae-ah | Won | 
International broadcast
| Country | Network(s)/Station(s) | Series premiere | Title | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| True4U | June 6, 2016 | พ่อค้าเร่แห่งโชซอน (Phor Kha Re Haeng Joseon; lit: "Vendor of Joseon"[8]) | - | RTV | July 23, 2016 | Kemenangan Cinta ("Wonder of Joseon") | 
References
- ↑ The word gaekju literally translates to "innkeeper merchant," which refers to private or free traders who sold grain wholesale; gaekju is no longer used in present-day Korea but was commonly used in the Joseon era.
 - ↑ "Jang Hyuk stars in new drama Gaekju". The Korea Times. July 16, 2015. Retrieved September 10, 2015.
 - ↑ Lee, Young-hee (October 3, 2013). 김주영 『객주』34년 만에 10권 완간...보부상 밑바닥 삶 오롯이 살려 뿌듯. JoongAng Ilbo (in Korean). Retrieved September 10, 2015.
 - ↑ Lee, Hye-won (August 11, 2015). "Korea's hottest actors to appear in new dramas". K-pop Herald. Retrieved September 10, 2015.
 - ↑ Lee, Hye-won (September 1, 2015). "K-drama roundup for September: SBS, KBS, MBC". K-pop Herald. Retrieved September 10, 2015.
 - ↑ "TNmS Daily Ratings: this links to current day-select the date from drop down menu". TNmS Ratings (in Korean). Archived from the original on November 28, 2013.
 - ↑ "AGB Daily Ratings: this links to current day-select the date from drop down menu". AGB Nielsen Media Research (in Korean). Archived from the original on December 26, 2013.
 - ↑ #พากย์ไทย เริ่มฉายวันนี้ตอนแรกค่ะ. facebook (in Thai). June 6, 2016. Retrieved June 28, 2016.
 
External links
- Official website (in Korean)
 - The Merchant: Gaekju 2015 on KBS World
 - The Merchant: Gaekju 2015 at HanCinema
 
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