Proof that the Hallmark formula knows no boundaries or language barriers, the South Korean romantic comedy series “No Gain No Love” streams on Prime Video.
As in most Hallmark movies, Son Hae-yeoung (Shin Min-a) is a driven businesswoman and executive who believes that she has the world figured out. Fearing that her single status will cost her a promotion and scuttle her carefully made career plans, she arranges a fake marriage to Kim Ji-wook (Kim Young-dae). He’s a local police officer who moonlights at the neighborhood convenience store. His portrayal as a righteous and civic-minded man also follows the Hallmark pattern.
It won’t take long for him to show her that there are life lessons that cannot be found in spreadsheets and PowerPoint presentations. Along the way, the faux couple discuss their situation with an older unmarried friend who has given up on love and with a famous web-based romance writer who thinks of little else.
With “No Gain No Love,” Prime Video is following the Netflix formula of filling its vast collection with Korean imports. Who would have predicted that Korea would become such a dominant player in the entertainment world? South Korea has invested heavily in internet infrastructure in this century, resulting in one of the most tech-obsessed societies on Earth. What does it say that its pop music has become such a dominant force in world youth culture?
Netflix’s dystopian anthology series “Black Mirror” is at its most unsettling when its scenarios involve situations just slightly beyond our shared present. With its internet saturation and all the attendant social ills that may bring, Korea can seem just a little ahead of our time. Some may dread the near future, but Koreans may already be there.
Fear of technology’s ability to unsettle is hardly unique to Korea. The recent Apple TV+ series “Sunny” plunges viewers into a rabbit hole involving Japan’s ritualistic traditions, its shadowy underworld and an aging society’s developing dependence on companion robots and a black market in hacked robotic software enabling cyber-helpers to do just about anything. If “Sunny” resembles a “Black Mirror” episode, it’s because its star and executive producer, Rashida Jones, has written for that Netflix series.
Along those lines, Netflix imports the Korean thriller series (or Kdrama, as the kids say) “The Frog,” about a peaceful community where nothing unusual happens that is completely shattered when a stranger comes to town.
— Proof that nice scenery is no impediment to homicide, “The Sommerdahl Murders” enters its fifth season on Acorn. Set in a Danish coastal town, it follows DCI Sommerdahl (Peter Mygind) who’s obsessive police work has put a strain on his marriage. Tough going when your police partner is your wife (Laura Drasbaek).
TONIGHT’S OTHER HIGHLIGHTS
— Dumped by her husband, a woman finds comfort with a shaggy dog in 2023 feature “The More Love Grows” (7 p.m., Hallmark, TV-G).
— A sailor vanishes during an elaborate engagement stunt on “NCIS” (8 p.m., CBS, r, TV-14).
— The Vegas finals enter their second night on “American Ninja Warrior” (8 p.m., NBC, TV-PG).
— Hawaii-bound on “The Bachelorette” (8 p.m., ABC, TV-PG).
— “Antiques Roadshow” (8 p.m. and 9 p.m., PBS, r, TV-G, check local listings) spends two episodes in Salt Lake City.
— A shark coughs up a sailor’s remains on “NCIS: Sydney” (9 p.m., CBS, r, TV-14).
— A Russian oligarch’s daughter needs protection on “NCIS: Hawai’i” (10 p.m., CBS, r, TV-14).
— A Salvadorian family loses their immigration status on “VOCES” (10 p.m., PBS, TV-14, check local listings).
CULT CHOICE
A kidnapper seizes the teenage son of a wealthy couple (Glenn Ford and Donna Reed) in the 1956 thriller “Ransom” (10:15 p.m., TCM, TV-PG). Instead of paying the ransom, the enraged father goes on television and offers a $500,000 reward to whomever can deliver his son and find his abductor. The film was remade in 1996 starring Mel Gibson. Like many dramas from the 1950s, “Ransom” emerged as a television play. This one was broadcast on “The U.S. Steel Hour,” starring Ralph Bellamy. Part of a daylong salute to Donna Reed, best known for her roles in “It’s a Wonderful Life,” and “From Here to Eternity” (8 p.m., TV-PG) as well as her eponymous television family comedy, “The Donna Reed Show,” which ran from 1958 to 1966.
SERIES NOTES
“Name That Tune” (8 p.m., Fox, TV-PG) … Patton Oswalt hosts “The 1% Club” (9 p.m., Fox, TV-PG) … “Celebrity Family Feud” (10 p.m., ABC, r, TV-PG) … “The Wall” (10 p.m., NBC, TV-PG).
LATE NIGHT
Jimmy Fallon welcomes Channing Tatum, Liza Colon-Zayas and Lawrence on “The Tonight Show” (11:35 p.m., NBC) … Taylor Tomlinson hosts Colton Dunn, Jason Sklar and Randy Sklar on “After Midnight” (12:35 a.m., CBS).
