Kim Yoo-jung's '100 Days of Lies' Tops 10% Ratings in Second Straight Hit

Actress Kim Yoo-jung has scored hit dramas two years in a row. Her tvN drama "100 Days of Lies" (Baegirui Geojinmal) has surpassed 10% in viewership ratings this year, following her solo lead role in "Dear X" last year.

Many former child actors in Korea have gone on to build steady careers. Kim Yoo-jung stands apart because of her work in projects that consistently resonate with viewers.

"100 Days of Lies" is a weekend drama produced to mark tvN's 20th anniversary. It is directed by Yoo In-sik and Kim Yoon-jin and written by Ryu Bo-ri. The spy thriller is set in Gyeongseong, the name used for Seoul during the Japanese colonial era. The story centers on Korean independence fighters who plant a spy inside the Japanese Government-General of Korea.

Kim plays Lee Ga-kyung, the best pickpocket in Gyeongseong. She agrees to become a spy in exchange for a passage to America. At first, she takes the job solely to reach her own goal. As she gets tangled up with independence activists, she gradually starts to believe in their cause.

From the early episodes, Ga-kyung uses her quick thinking to get out of difficult situations. When Fukuda (played by Kim Joong-hee) asks her to interpret during the questioning of an independence fighter, she discovers that the prisoner is Geum Seok-jung (Kam Woo-sung). After seeing him tortured, she tries to quit. However, Yoo Pil-lip (Lee Moo-saeng) persuades her into going back to the Government-General.

She later joins another interrogation alongside Kim Tae-woong (Park Jin-young). Speaking Korean, which Fukuda cannot understand, she secretly passes information to Geum and guides the conversation so he can figure out how Yoo So-ran (Kim Hyun-joo) is doing. Geum leaves her with one line: "Pick up a castella on your way." (Castella is a sponge cake.) Ga-kyung then brings So-ran the news of his death and his final request.

She also saves So-ran from being exposed. Ga-kyung learns that a secret package from the Suwon police station contains Geum's family photo. She distracts Yamada (Kouri Yuka), secretary to the colonial government's administrative superintendent, swaps out the documents and burns the photo to destroy the evidence.

At a banquet marking the opening of the Government-General's pneumatic tube system, she takes part in a bombing plot by the resistance group Gugukdan. To slip past the watch of Sato Shinichi (Jin Seon-kyu), she pulls a button off So-ran's clothes on purpose. Using the repair as an excuse, she gets into an office and puts the bomb together. She later takes the bomb out of a flower arrangement that had been moved outside the venue and hides it in a large cake.

Then the plan starts to fall apart. Tae-woong is ordered by the governor-general to interpret, and the prime minister is attacked. When Tae-woong is left alone near the bomb, Ga-kyung throws herself at the cart carrying the cake and shoves it away.

Her choices keep changing after the explosion. On a train to Busan, where she plans to board a ship for America, she goes through a police check. The officers look for a shoulder injury and examine her earrings, and she senses something is wrong. She gives up on America and goes back to Huiwon. With pearl earrings borrowed from a pawnshop and a calm manner, she avoids suspicion from Tae-woong and the other officers.

Ga-kyung once believed Korea's independence had nothing to do with her. After everything she has been through, she starts to understand what the activists are facing. Kim carries the drama by tracking that shift, from a woman focused on survival to one who takes risks for other people.

Kim debuted as a child actor in 2003 and has been acting for more than 20 years. Last year, she played Baek Ah-jin in the TVING original series "Dear X." The role was a break from her usual bright, lovable image. This year, playing a pickpocket turned spy, she has widened her range again.

The ratings back it up. Episode 10 of "100 Days of Lies," which aired on Nov. 8, drew a nationwide rating of 10.7%. That set a new high for the series.

Episode 11 airs on Nov. 14, at 9:10 p.m. KST.

For an actor who started out as a child, staying busy is one thing. Leading back-to-back hits in very different roles is another different matter, and it suggests Kim's second act as a lead is still picking up speed.